Malawi facing challenges to maintain girls in school – Minister Kalirani

Minister of Gender, Children, Disability and Social Welfare, Jean Kalirani said despite making progress in reducing child marriages
there has been a challenge to support girls who have been readmitted into schools and those removed from marriages with basic needs.

She said on Friday in the capital Lilongwe during a High Level Panel discussion on Child Marriages that most of the girls who have been
rescued out of the marriages lack support to maintain them in schools.

“Due to lack of material and financial support, these girls abandon school and go back into their marriages where they think they will
find their needs,” she said.

She said in order to address such challenge, government is partnering with stakeholders to mobilise support to ensure that the girls are
given necessary support to remain in schools.

African Union (AU) Goodwill Ambassador on Ending Child Marriage, who is also ActionAid International Board Chairperson, Nyaradzai
Gumbonzvanda, said, there is need to eliminate child marriages if Africa is to be prosperous.

“Child marriage is a sexual exploitation. Countries in Africa need to urgently find ways to totally eliminate this crime,” she said.

She therefore commended Malawi for its effort in dealing with ending child marriages which include passing laws on marrying age, involving traditional leaders to fight it and intensifying role modelling of girls to complete their education, among others.

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