More than 22,000 girls a year are estimated to die in pregnancy and childbirth as a result of child marriage, reveals a new Save the Children analysis released on International Day of the Girl Child.

With the highest rate of child marriage in the world, West and Central Africa accounts for nearly half (9,600) of all estimated child marriage-related deaths globally, or 26 deaths per day. The regional adolescent maternal mortality rate is four times higher than anywhere else in the world.

South Asia records 2,000 child marriage-related deaths each year (or six per day), followed by East Asia and the Pacific with 650 deaths (or two per day), and Latin America and the Caribbean, with 560 deaths per year (or almost two per day).

Although nearly 80 million child marriages have been prevented worldwide in the past 25 years, progress had stalled even before the COVID-19 pandemic, which has only worsened the inequalities that drive child marriage. With school closures, health services under pressure or closed and more families pushed into poverty, women and girls face increased risk of violence during prolonged closures. Another 10 million girls are now expected to marry by 2030, leaving more girls at risk of death.

Inger Ashing, Executive Director of Save the Children, said: "Child marriage is one of the worst and deadliest forms of sexual and gender-based violence against girls. Every year, millions are forced into marriages with men who are often much older, depriving them of the opportunity to continue learning, to be girls and, in many cases, to survive.

"Childbirth is the leading cause of death for adolescent girls because their young bodies are not ready for childbearing. The health risks to girls who bear children cannot and should not be ignored. Governments must prioritise girls and ensure that they are protected from child marriage and deaths related to early childbirth. This can only happen if girls have a voice in the decisions that affect them.

Gender inequality continues to fuel child marriage, as revealed in a national report by Save the Children in Nigeria, The State of Nigerian Girls: An Incisive Diagnosis of Child, Early and Forced Marriage in Nigeria. According to a survey conducted by the organisation, the belief that children born to young mothers are healthier and smarter is widespread among many communities. There is also a common perception that younger girls "refresh" older men with their "younger blood".

Even in countries where child marriage is illegal, exceptions are common and the practice is still widespread, including in Burkina Faso, which has one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world.

Viviane*, now 23, was promised at birth to her husband and was forced to marry him when she was only 12. She said:

"My husband was 54 years old and already had four wives. I wanted to continue studying, so I decided to escape. They caught me and took me back to live with him, so I tried again. I walked 40 km, managed to get on a bus and finally ended up in a centre that supports girl wives like me. Now I am studying mathematics and training to become a nurse, while counselling other girls on the importance of getting an education.

In a global report released today by Save the Children, Global Girlhood Report 2021: Girls' Rights in Crisis, the organisation calls on governments to:

1. Raise the voice of girls by supporting their right to safe and meaningful participation in all public decisions.

2. Address immediate and ongoing risks of gender-based violence, including child marriage, by placing girls' rights and gender equality at the centre of COVID-19 and humanitarian responses, development policy and broader efforts to make better progress.

3. Ensure the rights of all girls, including those affected by different forms of inequality and discrimination (including on the basis of gender, race, disability, economic background, etc.), through the development of inclusive policies and programmes. Safe and ethical data collection must also be improved to better understand and respond in real time to the impact of COVID-19 on existing economic, climate and conflict-related crises.

4. Ensure the safe and unrestricted participation of female humanitarian personnel in all humanitarian response efforts, including needs assessments, and the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of all humanitarian services at all levels.

5. Join the Generation Equality movement, working to deliver on the Global Acceleration Plan for Gender Equality, which set a goal of preventing nine million child marriages in five years.

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