Girls in parts of the country hit by drought and food shortages are increasingly being forced into child marriage, with rates rising by 119% in 2022. Bone-dry water sources, decimated crops and dying livestock have combined with vicious conflict to make early marriage a threat to them. SalmaSalma, 13, campaigns against early marriage in her community in Ethiopia’s Somali region. Early marriage is still a big problem in our village, and we need to do a lot to address it. Her family lost their livestock due to drought in the Somali region, and her parents believed that early marriage could offer her a better life.

Source: Ethiopian News October 10, 2023 06:05 UTC