In Zambia, girls prepare to take part in #MyLifeAt15, the global campaign asking Governments to fulfill their promise to end child marriage by 2030.
Meet Anna. At the age of fifteen, Anna wanted to become a famous singer. But now, Anna has more serious concerns on her mind. She is the last of seven girls. All of her sisters were married off at an early age and she worries that it might happen to her.
"My parents died when I was very young. We brought ourselves up. Most of my sisters got married young because of teenage pregnancy. They didn't have parents to support them, keep the child, let them go back to school. Our other relatives thought the only solution was to marry them off."
Ahead of the first African Girls' Summit, Anna is taking part in #MyLifeAt15, a global campaign asking governments to fulfill their commitments to end child marriage.
Child marriage in Zambia
Anna's fear is all too common. Every year, 15 million girls are married before their 18th birthday - the equivalent of the entire population of Zambia.
In Anna's own country, many girls worry about marriage. Zambia has one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world. It is estimated that approximately 31.4% of girls aged 20-24 were married by the age of 18 in Zambia.
Zambia's national campaign to end child marriage
Girls alone cannot bring an end to child marriage in Zambia. That is where the government comes in. In 2013, the Government of Zambia launched a country-wide campaign to end child marriage.
Spearheaded by the Ministry of Chiefs and Traditional Affairs, the campaign focused on two angles: empowering traditional leaders to become champions of girls' rights in their chiefdoms, and changing laws and policies to ensure that girls are legally protected from child marriage.
2015 saw further developments with the government developing a five-year action plan to address child marriage and co-hosting the African Girls' Summit on Child Marriage.
Girls call for action on child marriage
While these efforts are welcome, their impact has yet to trickle down. In fact, none of the girls knew about the campaign or the strategy. But they did have recommendations to make ahead of the African Girls' Summit.
- First, educate the parents, especially in rural areas where many families are not literate
- Educate teenagers about sexual health and distribute condoms to prevent teenage pregnancies
- Organise recreational activities to keep girls busy and from being exposed
- Involve schools in prevention
"Governments should put their heart in supporting the girls - the money, the funds, everything to support girls and give them a voice. Girls are important. And they can bring development to this country if they are supported."
The hope is that Anna's call to action, as many other girls, will be heard at the African Girls' Summit this week.
