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Board of Governors, or the governments they represent. ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this paper and accepts no responsibility
for any consequence of their use. The countries listed in this paper do not imply any view on ADB's part as to sovereignty or independent status or necessarily
conform to ADB's terminology.
Overview
1. Where does child marriage occur?- Global and
regional prevalence and scale
2. Motherhood in Childhood- Adolescent
Pregnancy
3. The underlying context- Son Preference
Son Preference and skewed Sex Ratios at Birth
4.
5.
6.
7.
70.0
64.9
60.0
47.4
50.0
40.7
40.0
30.0
20.0
9.0
10.0
3.9
0.0
10.4
11.5
14.2
16.8
18.4
19.6
22.0
24.0
43.0
Adolescent
birth rate
Arab States
12
50
50
South Asia
25
88
Eastern
Europe and
Central Asia
31
Sub-Saharan
Africa
24
120
Latin America
12
84
Country/regions
East and South East Asia
China
Hong Kong
Taiwan
Singapore
South Korea
Viet Nam
South Asia
India
Pakishtan
West Asia
Azerbaijan
Armenia
Georgia
Southeast Europe
Albania
Montenegro
SRB
117.8
116.2
108.4
107.5
106.7
111.2
Period
2011
2011
2009
2009
2010
2010
Data Source
Annual estimate
Birth registration
Birth registration
Birth registration
Birth registration
Annual demographic survey
110.5
109.9
2008-10
Sample registration
2007 Population and demographic survey
116.5
114.9
113.6
2011
2010
2009-11
Birth registration
Birth registration
Birth registration
111.7
109.8
2008-10
2009-11
Birth registration
Birth registration
Risk of Violence
Young age- a risk factor for
experiencing violence at the
hands of an intimate partner
Perpetrators of sexual
violence are typically boys
and men known to their
adolescent victims
25% ever married women
aged 15-19 in India had
experienced spousal
physical violence (NFHS-3)
Increased exploitation of
Delayed marriage among
men
women, trafficking, cross
Increased resort to
regional marriages violence
trafficking etc.
against women
Pressure on women to marry Increase in involuntary
non-marriage
and bear children
Impact stronger among
Control of womens lives and
the vulnerable men:
bodies
poorer, less educated,
Signs of Change
Child Marriage- In
Nepal, the prevalence
of child marriage has
declined substantially
(20 per cent or more)
during a short period
of five years
In India, rates of child marriage among girls under age 15
declined twice as fast as those among girls under 18 (Between
1999 &2005-06); Census 2011 data indicates further decline in
age at marriage
Skewed Sex Ratios- Positive change also achieved in terms of
arresting imbalance in SRBs in S.Korea- SRB imbalance began
in the 1980s, peaked at 115 in 1994 and has since declined to
almost normal (106.7 in 2010); patterns of a slow decline or
plateauing seen in Coastal China, South Caucasus and India
2.
3.
CCTs, vocational training and skill building, linking girls to income-generating activities
5.
Provide comprehensive sexuality education, residential schools for girls, bridge courses
for re-enrolent of girls, CCTs for older adolescent girls in Bangladesh and India
4.
Life skills training, provision of safe spaces for girls to discuss their futures, the provision
of information about their options, and the development of support networks
Reconciliation of laws to ensure consistent minimum legal age of marriage, and strict
enforcement mechanisms; strengthen civil registration and vital statistics
Ensure legal measures to protect and promote womens rights (gender biased sex
selection, dowry, violence, inheritance, employment)
Engaging with men and boys; using mass media communication tools
Acknowledgements:
Information for this presentation has been drawn from various sources from UNFPA, UNICEF,
World Bank, Population Council, ICRW and Girls Not Brides
http://www.unfpa.org/
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