Empower communities to end child marriage - Mexico

Recounting the achievements and challenges of the “Help them to not reach the altar” program

To date, 12 localities have signed an Agreement Act to prohibit the sale of girls, which has prevented 7,000 girls from being sold into marriage, allowing them to choose their life projects and continue in school. Through community and school empowerment strategies, the capacity of local authorities and the community to reject violence and recognize the rights of women and girls has been improved. Work has been done with teachers to prevent child marriage and eliminate harmful practices.

However, the challenge remains to continue the program “Help them not to reach the altar” in La Montaña, Guerrero, where deep-rooted customs allow for the sale of girls. Although these practices are illegal, many communities are unaware of this, perpetuating violence against them. Therefore, it is essential to work directly with the inhabitants to change these social norms and uphold the human and sexual rights of girls and women.

Next steps…

We still have 54 locations left in Metlatonoc in which we can implement the program, to achieve the signing of the Minutes of Agreement to prohibit the sale of girls. Also, the planning and implementation of the “bottom-up” strategies and the (bilingual) field team that resides in the place, allowed us to know and directly observe the needs of the population. The above has allowed us to design new strategies with greater scope in different areas, such as the promotion of the economic empowerment of women and the training of community promoters (youth and women) in sexual and reproductive health.

We are making visits to the localities to generate new alliances with community authorities, so your valuable support will continue to strengthen our program and make a difference in the lives of thousands of girls and women in Guerrero.

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