Child marriage will hinder war against poverty-World Bank

World Bank

It was reported on Tuesday by the World Bank that child marriage occurring in most developing countries will cost trillions of dollars in the next decade which will hinder war in the eradication of poverty.

According to experts an estimate of one in three girls are put up for early marriage and in every two seconds a child is being given off for marriage.

The World Bank said that Child marriage also gives a heavy blow on any economy that practices it as it results in an increase in growth population which means an increase in such countries' dependence ratio.

“Child marriage not only puts a stop to girls’ hopes and dreams, it also hampers efforts to end poverty and achieve economic growth and equity,” World Bank economist Quentin Wodon said in a statement.

“Ending this practice is not only the morally right thing to do but also the economically smart thing to do,” added Wodon, who co-authored the report – the first to look at the economic impact of child marriage.

One of the greatest advantages of ending child marriage is that it would lead to a reduction in population according to the study co-authored by the International Centre for Research on Women. It would also lead to women having healthier and educated children, further increasing growth and development.

Girls who marry young have more children on average than those who delay marriage.

Ending child marriage would reduce fertility rates by 11 per cent on average in 15 of the worst affected countries analyzed in the study.

Global gains from lower population growth could exceed 500 billion dollar annually by 2030, with cumulative gains topping four trillion dollars, the study said.

Although, World Leaders had agreed to eradicate child marriage by 2030 in a meeting that was held under the UN Sustainable Development Goals in 2015 but progress made towards achieving this has been limited.

This was to be so by authors because child marriage is not really seen as a social issue and the case of child marriage has not been made vehemently enough.