Adwinsa Publications launches book to address child marriage
Adwinsa Publications Ghana Limited has launched its latest book, titled: ‘Talata, the child bride’, aimed at addressing the issue of child marriage in the Ghanaian society.
The
book, which was authored by Naomi Adjei, Matilda Agyapong and Eugenia Agyapong,
all Students of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, is
focused on a true-life story of a 12-year-old girl whose dream of becoming a
medical doctor was nearly shattered due to child marriage.
The
event which took place in Accra, served as a call on stakeholders to get on
board to support the idea of using story books as a tool for ending child
marriages, especially in the Northern parts of the country where the issue is
prevalent.
In
their speech, the authors, all in their early 20s stated that: “throughout the
research, we were faced with the reality of the lives of some young ladies who
had the potential of being like us and even more but the opportunity to do so
was snatched away from them. The painful truth starred at us in the face, child
marriage is still a thing of this day and age.
When people hear about child
marriage, they think it’s happening elsewhere not in Ghana. The story of the
12-year-old Talata, is a true story of a girl who is shy or afraid to tell her
story. This is not just a launch but a call to everyone to seek the future of
these girls and come support. They’re just girls and not brides, children
themselves and not mothers.”
In
an exclusive interview with thebftonline.com, the Managing Director of Adwinsa
Publications, Kwaku Oppong Amponsah said there will be a second launch in
Tamale in October, adding that the book will reveals to children, what they can
do and who they can become in future. It also tells what agencies are available
and where to report such cases of child marriages.
Speaking
as the Guest Speaker for the event, the Minister for Gender, Children and
Social Protection, Otiko Afisa Djaba noted that poverty should not be used as
an excuse for perpetuating child marriage. She
said: “Child marriage is a violation of human rights. It’s an abuse against the
children, their families and even the society. It is a disgrace to use poverty
as an excuse. Poverty is not an excuse. It is not an honor. There is no excuse
for any poor person to sell their children to earn a living for a moment.
She
further assured of government’s commitment to institute measures to reduce
poverty, saying: “If school fees is the problem, under our government, there is
going to be free education and we are going to grow the economy and therefore
there will be jobs.”
As
part of efforts to curb poverty, the minister also indicated that her outfit is
working with the Ministry of Education to establish child’s rights clubs in all
schools and Human Rights Association at the district levels to address the
child marriage menace, adding: “There will be a national dialog, which will
address negative traditional and cultural practices”, she noted.
According
to UNICEF, In Ghana, 1 in 4 women (27%) married before the ag
All
over the world, 22 million girls are already married and it is estimated that
up to another 280 million are at risk of becoming brides before they turn 18.
The total number of women married in childhood is 700 million, and every year an
additional 15 million girls under age 18 are married.
UNICEF
cautions that, if the current rate of progress is sustained, the total number
of women married as children will remain the same as today in 2050, although
many more girls will have avoided early marriage.
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