By Tichaona Katsvamutima
The United Nations and its development partners have called for urgent action to end child marriage and teenage pregnancy in Zimbabwe, warning that the practices continue to undermine girls’ rights, education and future economic opportunities.
An estimated one in three Zimbabwean girls is married before the age of 18, while 23 percent of girls aged between 15 and 19 have begun childbearing, according to statistics cited in a joint statement issued by the UN and its development partners.
The figures highlight the scale of the challenges confronting Zimbabwean girls despite progress in advancing their rights.
In the statement issued in Harare, ahead of the International Day of the Girl on October 11, the UN, with technical leadership from UNFPA, UNICEF and UN Women, together with Plan International, warned that child marriage and teenage pregnancy remained significant obstacles to gender equality and national development.
The International Day of the Girl on Sunday, October 11, was commemorated under the theme, “End Child Marriage and Invest in Girls’ Rights.”
Observed annually since 2012 following its declaration by the United Nations General Assembly in 2011, the day draws international attention to discrimination, violence and other barriers preventing girls from realising their full potential.
UN Resident Coordinator Rosemary Kalapurakal said the consequences extended beyond individual girls, affecting families, communities and Zimbabwe’s broader development prospects.
“Behind these statistics are girls whose education is interrupted, whose health and wellbeing are put at risk, and whose opportunities to participate fully in society are constrained,” Kalapurakal said.
She warned that early marriage and adolescent pregnancy deprived girls of fundamental rights while reinforcing existing social and economic inequalities.
“They perpetuate cycles of poverty, inequality and exclusion, and increase girls’ vulnerability to violence and exploitation,” she said.
The warning comes as Zimbabwe continues efforts to eliminate child marriage, defined as any marriage or union involving a person below the age of 18.
Despite legal and policy measures introduced to protect children, the figures cited by the UN suggest that significant challenges remain in translating those commitments into effective protection for vulnerable girls.
The organisations stressed that legislation alone would not eliminate the practice, calling for sustained investment in education, healthcare, child protection services and economic opportunities.
Kalapurakal said Zimbabwe risked losing valuable human potential when girls were denied opportunities to complete their education and pursue independent futures.
“When girls are married too early or face early pregnancies, communities lose future leaders, innovators, entrepreneurs, and change-makers,” she said.
“Ending child marriage and addressing teenage pregnancy are therefore not only moral imperatives, but also critical investments in Zimbabwe’s social and economic development.”
The joint statement identified entrenched social norms as contributing factors to child marriage and adolescent pregnancy, urging parents, traditional and religious leaders, educators, boys and men to take a more active role in challenging harmful practices.
It highlighted community-based initiatives, including the Not-in-My-Village Campaign to End Adolescent Pregnancy, the Not-in-My-School campaign and the Prevention of Child Marriages and Child Labour initiative (PREaCH), as interventions aimed at tackling the problem.
However, the organisations cautioned that such programmes required sustained financial and institutional support to achieve lasting results.
They urged the government and development partners to ensure that commitments to protecting girls were backed by adequately funded programmes capable of reaching those most vulnerable to early marriage, teenage pregnancy and social exclusion.
“For Government and partners, this means translating commitments into adequately funded programmes and services that reach every girl, including the most vulnerable,” the statement said.
The UN also called on the private sector to support skills development, economic empowerment and employment opportunities for young women.
It emphasised the importance of involving girls directly in decisions affecting their lives, particularly in the formulation of policies and programmes intended to advance their rights.
Ending child marriage is also a target under Sustainable Development Goal 5.3, which calls for the elimination of harmful practices, including child, early and forced marriage.
The UN and its partners stressed that Zimbabwe’s progress in protecting girls should be measured by tangible improvements in their lives rather than policy commitments alone.
“Progress must ultimately be measured not by promises made, but by tangible improvements in the lives of girls across Zimbabwe,” the statement said.
The organisations warned that failure to adequately address child marriage and adolescent pregnancy would undermine efforts to reduce poverty, advance gender equality and achieve sustainable national development.
