Bolgatanga: Traditional leaders in the Upper East Region have been urged to intensify efforts to eliminate child marriage and help secure a better future for young people, particularly girls. Mr. James Twene, the Acting Upper East Regional Director of the Department of Gender, made the call during a follow-up meeting on the implementation of a child marriage action plan held in Bolgatanga.
According to Ghana News Agency, Mr. Twene emphasized the vital role chiefs and queen mothers play in shaping attitudes and behaviors within their communities, stressing the need for them to lead advocacy efforts to end child marriage. He stated, "Child marriage remains a serious challenge in the region and continues to impede the education, health, and development of vulnerable girls." Mr. Twene urged traditional rulers to use their authority to educate their subjects on the harmful consequences of child marriage and to promote practices that support the rights and well-being of children.
The meeting was part of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Joint Global Programme to End Child Marriage. The Joint Programme is designed to work with various countries and stakeholders to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly Target 5.3, which aims to eliminate all forms of harmful practices, including child marriage, by 2030. In the Upper East Region, the programme is being implemented in six districts: Bawku West, Kassena-Nankana West, Builsa South, Bongo, Nabdam, and Talensi.
The meeting brought together traditional rulers, including chiefs and queen mothers, to assess progress made since the action plan was developed in December 2024 and to chart a path forward in tackling child marriage. Madam Yvonne Wonchua, the UNFPA Focal Person at the Upper East Regional Coordinating Council, said child marriage was a form of gender-based violence and stressed the urgent need for all stakeholders to support campaigns to end the practice.
Madam Dora Kulariba, the Upper East Regional Adolescent Focal Person at the Ghana Health Service, noted that teenage pregnancy and child marriage continued to surge in the region and called for urgent action to curb the canker. She revealed that over 2,750 girls had become pregnant in the first six months of 2025, while 6,979 adolescent girls had been married within the same period, stressing the need for intensified education to empower families to play a critical role in supporting their girl children.
Mr. Jaladeen Abdulai, the Upper East Regional Director of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), noted that although there are several laws against child marriage and other harmful practices, enforcement remained a challenge. He encouraged traditional rulers to apply the Chieftaincy Act to punish those who perpetrate child marriage and to report criminal matters to law enforcement agencies for investigation and punishment to serve as a deterrent to others.
Naba Sigri Bewong, the Paramount Chief of the Sakote Traditional Area, noted that he had begun a campaign using various community gatherings to educate his subjects on the negative effects of child marriage and expressed the hope that, with time, there would be changes.
