SMART START AS A TOOL TO END A CYCLE OF CHILD MARRIAGE IN ETHIOPIA.
Marriage before the age of 18 is considered a child marriage and is associated with a lot of serious social and health problems for the young bride, her family, and society, and it is also a violation of human rights. UNICEF reports reveal sub-Saharan African countries have the highest level of child marriages. Globally the prevalence of child marriage is decreasing through efforts taken by different stakeholders, but it is still a serious public health concern.
In Ethiopia, according to UNICEF, 4 in 10 young women married before the age of 18 and the country is home to 15 million child brides, of these 6 million were married before the age of 15. These data indicate how vastly the problem affects Ethiopia and the need for collaboration on ending child marriage.
On February 25, 2021, Save the Children prepared a learning event with the topic of “Child Marriages: Initiatives, approaches, evidence, and tools to eliminate child marriage in Ethiopia” and PSI/E and many like-minded organizations gathered to discuss how to work effectively in ending child marriage. The event comprised gallery walks, presentations, and discussion time. The event highlighted the excellent work of partners to stop child marriages from happening.
PSI/E shared how it is working to end child marriage in its new approach called Smart Start. Through Smart Start, we are working with current child brides to offer them more opportunities and ensure these girls still have a chance to achieve their dreams and offer their children a different future. PSI/E Smart Start, through the Roadmap for Integrating Smart Start in Ethiopia (RISE) a 5-year program (January 2020-December 2024), finds and supports married adolescent girls in their most vulnerable moments and enables them to envision, make decisions, and achieve their dreams. Smart Start does this by introducing targeted financial messaging designed to help adolescent rural girls aged 15–19 and their husbands' plan for the families, and lives that they want. Smart Start leads with goal setting and planning and then transitions into a conversation about how modern contraception can be a tool couples can use to achieve a better future.
GIRLS ARE AT THE CENTER Because THEY ARE EXPERTS OF THEIR OWN ISSUES!
