WUNRN
Egyptian
activists demonstrate in front of the presidential palace in Cairo in 2012 to
support women’s rights and protest child marriage. (AFP File Photo)
By
Rana Khaled - June 22, 2014
After
Egypt increased the legal age for marriage to 18 years in 2008, policy makers
expected to see a decline in the number of early marriages. But, according to
new research presented at a seminar at The American University of Cairo this
week, the country must overcome significant economic, social, and cultural
barriers before child marriage becomes a thing of the past.
AUC’s
Social Research Center organised the two-day seminar in an attempt to “bridge
the gap between the different governmental and private institutions concerned
with early marriage and reproductive health in Egypt,” said Zeinab Khadr, a
professor at the faculty of economics and political science at AUC, who helped
plan the event. Researchers from AUC, Al-Azhar, Cairo, Sohag and Assuit
Universities presented at the conference. Other participants included the
Egyptian Society for Population Studies and Reproductive Health, and Save the
Children, among others.
In
Cairo Governorate, nearly 17% of women, aged 10 to 29, were married before age 18,
according to an AUC study of 4,500 women that was presented at the seminar. The
proportion increased to nearly 18% among women living in low-income areas.
About
7% of the women surveyed reported that their husbands maltreat them and about
27% reported that their husbands have physically abused them, according to the
report.
Early
marriage is associated with higher fertility and early pregnancy, which can
lead to sexually transmitted diseases and birth complications, according to AUC
researchers. It also has an adverse effect on women’s educational attainment,
as they are more likely to drop out of school.
In
Upper Egypt, a major driver of early marriage is low income among parents, said
Hany Helmy, of the Egyptian NGO Support Center. In an attempt to attack
the root of the problem, the nonprofit has started providing families with
micro loans to help their girls finish their education.
The
age of marriage affects the role women play in decision making in their
families, said Zeinab Heada, senior technical advisor at the international
nonprofit organisation CARE International. According to a study CARE conducted
in Minya governorate, early marriage has adverse effects on a girl’s personal
growth, lessens her opportunity to form independent opinions, and makes her
“implicitly obedient to her husband”. The study showed that girls in Minya were
prevented from having a mobile phone or having an internet access.
CARE
has had success combating early marriage through the use of interactive
theatre, Heada said. They used presentations, puppet plays and poetry to raise
awareness about the dangers associated with early marriage. They asked girls to
spread the idea to their peers at school.
Rahby
Shaker, the head of El Salam Association for Social Care and Community Development,
said the large number of early marriages in Assuit governorate has contributed
to high percentages of illiteracy among women.
The
association organises about 50 field visits per month to advocate for literacy
among women. They also gathered about 600 of the workers in health sectors and
provided them with training sessions to make them more qualified to help girls
in the area.
During
the seminar, researchers also discussed the first draft of the strategy
proposed by the National Population Council to require the different
associations working in the fields of early marriage and reproductive health to
work together and share their progress and achievements on a regular basis.
“For
the first time, the council used different scientific methods to collect data
from ordinary people and conducted a lot of focus groups, advisory sessions and
scientific researches to design this strategy,” Khadr said. “I think this is
the first step in the right direction.”