An analysis by the Fiji Bureau of Statistics (FBoS) 2022 shows that about 9 per cent of women aged between 20 and 29 were married off when they were under the age of 18, says the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement.
It said this in a statement yesterday while releasing an analysis factsheet on early and forced child marriages in Fiji.
The analysis factsheet covers existing laws, policies, and commitments, as well as women’s voices and experiences.
“For the Northern Division, the prevalence rate was much higher at 12 per cent,” the statement said.
“These statistics are utterly unacceptable in today’s modern day and age. No child should be forced to marry, for whatever reason, especially a girl child.
“Alarmed by the statistics, FWRM carried out a survey with 96 Fijian women across Fiji to understand why child marriages are still happening in Fiji. Among the responses, most of the women stated that unintended teenage pregnancies, poverty, low levels of education, and high unemployment rates were key influencing factors inflicting forced marriage of children, especially for the girl child.”
Meanwhile, FWRM said they had engaged in a dialogue with key stakeholders on the survey findings and FBoS data, prior to the release of the situational analysis factsheet.
“The key stakeholders included government agencies, faith-based organisations, and civil society who recognise that eradicating early and forced marriages in Fiji must be a holistic approach starting with duty bearers and all service providers to recognise that child marriages are illegal in Fiji and that all referral pathways, reporting, investigation and prosecuting child marriages must be carried out properly to ensure the protection of all girls.
“The FWRM factsheet was developed to assist service providers, advocacy organisations, policymakers, and legislators on quick facts about child marriage, in our efforts to create awareness about this pressing and unaddressed issue that threatens the potential and the capabilities of our budding young girls who dream of a bright future.
“The publication of the factsheet is supported by the Australian Government through the We Rise Coalition in partnership with the International Women’s Development Agency.”
