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ABSTRACT
In 1998, Ghana enacted the children’s Act 560 (1998) to harmonize its national laws to the principle of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). This Act was enacted to protect children. Twenty years on, children in Ghana are still exposed to harmful practices which have extreme consequences on their development. Child marriage is one of the harmful practices to which children in Ghana remain exposed. Currently, the national child marriage prevalence rate stands at 21% in Ghana. This study assessed the implementation of international treaties on child marriage in Ghana. It explored the strategies by government to end child marriage as per international treaties ratified. It further explored the implementation of the treaties thus far and the contributions of development partners in addressing the problem of child marriage. The study was conducted using qualitative research methodology. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with selected persons with child protection mandates at the district and national levels including development partners UNICEF and International Needs Ghana. Case studies of child marriages survivors were also constructed through interviews with five girls from Hini, Gomoa Osbonpanyin, Gomoa Akwamu, Amissakrom and Eshiem. The findings show that Ghana has adequate laws to end child marriage and other child protection violations. The government has also made some strides in efforts to deal with the practice yet there are gaps between legal intent and practice. The challenge remains with the effective implementation of these treaties Ghana has signed as there are financial and technical constraints as well as tensions between statutory law and customary practices. It is concluded from these findings that for Ghana to be able to end child marriage by 2030, an effective bottom-up approach should be adopted in policy implementation and adequate financial and technical resources must be invested in the work of institutions with child protection mandates. It is mainly recommended that Community Child Protection Committees (CCPCs) be established to intervene in various child protection violations as the country does not have enough resources to make interventions, especially at the community level to ensure children are safe.
Introduction
The United Nations Children’s fund (UNICEF) defines child marriage is defined as a formal or informal union between persons below the age 18 years.1 Child marriage continues to be one of the harmful practices affecting children in Ghana. It is a global phenomenon, involving gross violations of human rights, which threatens the survival and development of children. Global statistics released by UNICEF indicate that each year, 15 million girls marry before reaching their eighteenth birthday. A breakdown reveals that every day 41,000 girls get married, every minute 28 girls get married and every two seconds one girl gets married.2 In Ghana, one (1) in four (4) women between age 20 – 24 are married before the age of 18.3 Girls are disproportionately affected by this practice. Though the practice has been in existence for generations, the fight to end it has been weak. The national prevalence rate of child marriage in Ghana between 2011 and 2014 stood at 21%.4 The Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF, Fatoumata Ndiaye in a press release said, “it will take over 100 years to eliminate child marriage in West and Central Africa considering the current reduction rates”.5
Ghana is one of the first countries to sign and ratify the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in 1990. The country is also a signatory to other international and regional conventions with similar objectives, such as the Convention concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC) among others. These Conventions seek to protect the rights of children from all forms of violence, abuse and exploitation. Further, Ghana embarked on a series of law reforms aimed at protecting the rights of children and strengthening the legal and policy frameworks concerning children. These include the promulgation of the Children’s Act 1998 (Act 560), the Juvenile Justice Act 2003
(Act 653), the Child Rights Regulations 2003 (LI 1705), the Human Trafficking Act 2005 (Act 694) and the Domestic Violence Act 2007 (Act 732) among others. There is no specific policy on child marriage in Ghana, yet in 2013, Ghana supported the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in the adoption of a resolution banning child marriage.6
Despite the positive legal frameworks to protect children, children continue to be exposed to child marriage, especially at the community level. A recent study by the Ghana Health Service in the Central Region alone revealed that 283 girls were given to marriage in 2016 whilst 12,048 were pregnant.7
In 2010, a national child protection system mapping and analysis was undertaken to respond to child protection violations including child marriage. The mapping exercise revealed that the formal child protection system was not adequately addressing many of the needs of children and their families and were not designed to be culturally appropriate and sustainable. A key recommendation of the mapping process was re-conceptualizing of the system to make it more relevant, sustainable and ‘fit’ for Ghana by utilizing and capitalizing on the strengths of existing community structures and practices.8 This led to the introduction of Ghana’s child protection policy among others to coordinate activities to end child protection violations including child marriage. INGOs, especially, UNICEF, have been a force providing support for child protection interventions in Ghana as reported in the numerous initiatives they have embarked on to end child marriage.
Child marriage directly hinders the achievement of the eradication of many national concerns such as extreme poverty and hunger, universal primary education, gender equality and empowerment of women, reduction of child mortality, improvement of maternal health and the combat of HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases.9
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