An Overview of Early Child Marriage and Its Challenges

The paper examined challenges posed by early child marriage in the Nigerian Constitution and human rights law. It focused on health risks involved in early pregnancies and the fate of young women affected by Vesico-Vaginal Fistula. Early child marriage remains a problem in many parts of Nigeria and other countries in Africa and beyond. It is practised and justified in the name of tradition, culture and religion, especially among young girls in rural, poor and deprived communities. Early child marriage is a form of exploitation that endangers girls, violates the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and exposes young girls to physical and mental danger, sexual violence, sexually transmitted infections and premature pregnancies.