In Bangladesh, poverty is forcing girls as young as 10 to become child-brides. Though parents believe this is a viable way of providing for their daughters, it usually means a life of abuse, poverty, and loneliness. And it often leads to the girl being trafficked. This project provides a girl with a scholarship to stay in school, which is the best way to prevent child marriage and give her the chance to become educated and rise above poverty.
Bangladesh has one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world, even though the legal age is set at 18 years-of-age. Girls can be seen as a financial burden so a family living in poverty will often marry off girls (some as young as 10) and push the responsibility onto the new husband, who is often a complete stranger. Girls that marry before they are ready will not only lose their hopes and dreams, but are also at greater risk of abuse, childbirth injuries, trafficking, and even death.
A girl with 10 years of education has a 6 times lower chance of being forced into marriage before she is 18. This project provides scholarships for girls at risk in Bangladesh, or other countries where World Concern works with a high rate of child marriage, such as Chad and Kenya. By financially supporting a girl to stay in school, it alleviates the financial burden on the family and gives the girl a chance to receive an education and rise above poverty.
Providing a scholarship for a girl to receive an education will not only directly transform her life and save her from becoming a child bride, it will also impact a generation by empowering educated, young women to make a difference in their communities.
