Child marriage rates rise in Nepal during the pandemic

Thirty child marriage cases were held in a municipality in the Sarlahi district during the closure period earlier this year. This startling fact highlights how girls are particularly vulnerable as the Covid-19 crisis affects Nepal’s economy.

The legal age for marriage in Nepal is 20. Globally, girls who marry before the age of 18 are child brides, yet nearly 40% of girls under the age of 18 get married in Nepal, making this country one of the worst examples in Asia. .

“There were more child marriages than usual in Sarlahi, Daylich and Surkhet regions,” says Samita Pradhan of the Women’s Reproductive Rights Program at the Center for Agricultural Environment and Development (CAED). “I think people follow their culture – marry your daughters at a young age because they are such a burden.”

A survey by the British Agency for Voluntary Services Overseas (VSO) found that 11 out of 152 girls were married in the four counties during the lockdown this year. The nongovernmental organization Room to Read said in May that it had discovered at least seven cases of child marriage during the lockdown. In October, the Lumbini Regional Police Office launched a two-week campaign to prevent child marriage after 49 cases were reported in the province in the past three years.

“The kids were not going to school, so they had more time and the parents had thought, ‘Let them go,” says Pradhan.

The expected impact of the epidemic on child marriage is frightening. An estimate by the United Nations Population Fund in September warned that if Covid-19 caused an average delay of one year in interventions to end child marriage, there would be about 13 million more child marriages over the next decade.

In Nepal, in the aftermath of the 2015 earthquake, child marriage was reported to have spiked as increased economic pressure led to more marriages of boys and underage girls.

The destruction of homes and properties and the disruption of livelihoods from the earthquake put additional financial pressures. For some parents, this is directly related to decisions to marry their daughters early. For some teens, marriage decisions have been about meeting basic needs, such as food and shelter, according to the report on Child Marriage in Humanitarian Settings in South Asia.

Child marriage factors are the same in most human cases, says Apekchya Rana Khatri of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Nepal: “One of the most important drivers is the social and cultural norms and practices, which devalue girls. It starts from there.”

In Dolakha and Sindhupalchok, the trend of arranged marriages before the age of 18 was decreasing before the earthquake. Cases of love and escape marriages have skyrocketed among older teens after the earthquake. Each region is a unique place of child marriage, where the level of education, proximity to urban areas, culture and religion play beneficial roles.

Pooja from Godaita Rural Municipality in Sarlay says she got married during the lockdown and was 20 years old at the time. A local NGO is questioning her age. But Pooja’s father, Raj Kumar, says his daughter is “marital.”

“I only got married to two of my daughters after they turned 20,” says Raj Kumar. My third daughter Pooja got married in March to a man working in a foreign country, because they did not ask for a dowry. I cannot say no to such an offer because I already have a debt that I must pay and if I have to take out other loans to get a dowry in order to marry my daughters, I will die of debt. ”

The reasons for arranging a pooja marriage echo those that the fathers of the bridal children often hear. He says, “I have five daughters, and you know how difficult it is to marry daughters in our society.”

Financial issues can lead families to push their daughters into marriage early because less than one person can feed and clothe. However, experts also argue that there is a rule that girls are married before the age of nineteen.

“But the biggest reason for child marriage that we can deduce after the investigation is the economic one,” says Anju Sah, a reproductive and sexual health rights activist in Sarlahy. Parents were also concerned about their daughters’ elopement due to the increasing use of smartphones girls and boys use to meet, chat and sometimes even arrange escapes.

The lockdown has also become a catalyst for some families as they can easily complete the ritual marriage of girls between 16 and 18 years old with smaller budgets without inviting too many people.

“Most of them are illiterate and usually have a hard time knowing what to do if they encounter any kind of problem,” Sah says. Young mothers are unable to deliver normal babies, while pregnancy and motherhood also affect their health. Miscarriage is also common among young mothers.

When we spoke to Pooja in November, she had returned home with her parents while writing her eleventh grade exams.

“My husband and I have no plans to have children until I finish my studies. There is no pressure from my relatives to have children now. I am fortunate to have a husband who understands and supports my studies.”

Rana Khatri says that creating opportunities for families to reduce the impact of the current economic downturn and create awareness about gender-based violence would go a long way in reducing child marriage. “Reopening schools is an essential step in eliminating the risks of child marriage during the pandemic.”

.

What Are The Main Benefits Of Comparing Car Insurance Quotes Online

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2020, / Compare-autoinsurance.Org has launched a new blog post that presents the main benefits of comparing multiple car insurance quotes. For more info and free online quotes, please visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/the-advantages-of-comparing-prices-with-car-insurance-quotes-online/ The modern society has numerous technological advantages. One important advantage is the speed at which information is sent and received. With the help of the internet, the shopping habits of many persons have drastically changed. The car insurance industry hasn't remained untouched by these changes. On the internet, drivers can compare insurance prices and find out which sellers have the best offers. View photos The advantages of comparing online car insurance quotes are the following: Online quotes can be obtained from anywhere and at any time. Unlike physical insurance agencies, websites don't have a specific schedule and they are available at any time. Drivers that have busy working schedules, can compare quotes from anywhere and at any time, even at midnight. Multiple choices. Almost all insurance providers, no matter if they are well-known brands or just local insurers, have an online presence. Online quotes will allow policyholders the chance to discover multiple insurance companies and check their prices. Drivers are no longer required to get quotes from just a few known insurance companies. Also, local and regional insurers can provide lower insurance rates for the same services. Accurate insurance estimates. Online quotes can only be accurate if the customers provide accurate and real info about their car models and driving history. Lying about past driving incidents can make the price estimates to be lower, but when dealing with an insurance company lying to them is useless. Usually, insurance companies will do research about a potential customer before granting him coverage. Online quotes can be sorted easily. Although drivers are recommended to not choose a policy just based on its price, drivers can easily sort quotes by insurance price. Using brokerage websites will allow drivers to get quotes from multiple insurers, thus making the comparison faster and easier. For additional info, money-saving tips, and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ Compare-autoinsurance.Org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc. "Online quotes can easily help drivers obtain better car insurance deals. All they have to do is to complete an online form with accurate and real info, then compare prices", said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company. CONTACT: Company Name: Internet Marketing CompanyPerson for contact Name: Gurgu CPhone Number: (818) 359-3898Email: [email protected]: https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ SOURCE: Compare-autoinsurance.Org View source version on accesswire.Com:https://www.Accesswire.Com/595055/What-Are-The-Main-Benefits-Of-Comparing-Car-Insurance-Quotes-Online View photos