Storybook Marriage UNICEF
UNICEF has partnered with wedding blog Bridal Musings to raise awareness of the effect of child marriage on young girls. The campaign is hosted on Bridal Musings, and runs through Instagram and Twitter as well as YouTube. Launched before International Womens’ Day, it also highlights actual stories of victims of childhood marriage.
UNICEF and Child Marriage
According to UNICEF, child marriage, or a marriage or informal union before the age of 18, happens to both boys and girls, but girls are by far the most likely victims. It’s sadly widespread through the world and can lead to a lifetime of deprivation and trauma. Although it has decreased over the past three decades, it’s still a practice that is common in some countries. Worldwide, over 700 million women alive right now were married as children: more than 1 in 3 of those were married before they were 15. Girls who marry before they turn 18 are less likely to remain in school, and more likely to experience intimate partner violence. Young girls have a higher chance of complications in pregnancy and childbirth, and their infants are more likely to be stillborn are die within the first month.
“The world has awakened to the damage child marriage causes to individual girls, to their future children, and to their societies,” said Unicef Executive Director Anthony Lake. “This is critical now because if current trends continue, the number of girls and women married as children will reach nearly 1 billion by 2030 – 1 billion childhoods lost, 1 billion futures blighted.”
About the Campaign
You can help to spread awareness by sharing the images on the Bridal Musings site or contributing to UNICEF.
