Child Marriage Practice in Ebonyi State: The Sustainability of Socio Economic and Cultural Factors.

The study examined the socio-economic and cultural factors contributing to child marriage in selected Local Government Areas of Ebonyi State, Nigeria. Despite efforts to combat child marriage, it persists, particularly in underdeveloped regions like Nigeria, especially in the Moslem North and Ebonyi State in the East. The investigation focused on individuals aged 18 and older in Ebonyi State, which had a population of 2,176,947 according to the 2006 census. To project the adult population for 2019, the 2006 population was estimated at 3,278,566 using an annual growth rate of 3.2%. The sample size for the study was 624, calculated using Taro Yamane's formula. A multi-stage sampling approach was employed, involving the three senatorial zones of Ebonyi: Ebonyi North, Central, and South. Cluster sampling categorized each zone with the Local Government Areas (LGAs), and simple random sampling selected Ebonyi, Ikwo, and Onicha LGAs. From each LGA, three communities were chosen using a simple balloting system, resulting in a total of nine communities selected across the three LGAs. The research assessed the reliability of its instrument using Cronbach Alpha and analyzed quantitative data using SPSS, employing descriptive statistics and chi-square tests. Qualitative data from in-depth interviews were analyzed with Nvivo. Findings indicate older individuals in Ebonyi State tend to support child marriage more than younger individuals, influenced by cultural values and male dominance. Income was identified as a significant factor in the prevalence of child marriage, which adversely affects girls' futures. The study advocates for heightened awareness of the risks associated with child marriage, particularly in rural areas, and calls for culturally suitable programs to promote behavioral change regarding family size and marriage practices.

Child Marriage, Socio-cultural, Parental upbringing, Practice

1. Abayomi, A. A., & Olabode, K. T. (2013). Domestic violence and death: Women as endangered gender in Nigeria. American Journal of Sociological Research, 3(3), 53-60. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

2. Adebambo, A.V. (2010) Cultural Influence on child marriage; Focus on Northern Nigerians Resident in Ogun State, Nigeria. Thesis. Home Science and Management. College of Food Science & Human Ecology, University of Agriculture, Abeokuta. 48-49. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

3. Adedokun, O., Adeyemi, O., & Dauda, C. (2016). Child marriage and maternal health risks among young mothers in Gombi, Adamawa State, Nigeria: implications for mortality, entitlements and freedoms. African health sciences, 16(4), 986-999. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

4. Adhikari, R. K. (2003). Early marriage and childbearing: Risks and consequences. In: Bott S, Jejeebhoy S, Shah, Puri C, (eds.) Towards Adulthood: Exploring the Sexual and Reproductive Health of Adolescents in South Asia. Geneva: World Health Organization. 62–66. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

5. Agege, E. A., Nwose, E. U., & Odjimogho, S. (2018). Parental perception of girl-child early marriage amongst the Urhobos in Nigeria. International Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health, 5(8), 3189-1390. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

6. Anikpo, M., Mohammed, A., Salau, A., Ezegbe, M. & Okunamiri, R. (2015). Basic Social Studies for secondary schools. Nigeria: Learn Africa Plc. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

7. Ann, B. (2002). Feminism, Cultural Theory and Cultural Forms. Routledge publication, London. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

8. Bennell, P. (2002). Hitting the target: doubling primary school enrollments in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2015. World Development, 30(7), 1179-1194. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

9. Berk, L. E. (2000). Child development. (5th Ed). Boston: Allyn and Bacon. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

10. Braimah, T. S. (2014). Child marriage in Northern Nigeria: Section 61 of Part 1 of the 1999 Constitution and the protection of children against marriage. African human Rights Law Journal, 14(2), 474-488. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

11. Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development: Experiment by nature and design. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

12. Bunting, A. (2005). Stages of development: marriage of girls and teens as an international human rights issue. Social & Legal Studies, 14(1), 17-38. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

13. Calandruccio, G. (2005). A review of recent research on human trafficking in the Middle East1. International Migration, 43(1‐2), 267-299. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

14. Center for Reproductive Law and Policy (2001). Women of the world: Laws and policies affecting their reproductive lives (Anglophone Africa). New York: CRLP. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

15. Chaudhuri-Brill, S. (2016). The role of anthropology in developing the “culture concept” in public discourse/Úloha antropologie v rozvíjení „konceptu kultury” ve veřejném diskurzu. Český lid, 103(3), 323-370. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

16. Clark, S. (2004). Early marriage and HIV risks in sub-Saharan Africa. Studies in Family Planning. 35(3), 149–160. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

17. Coontz, S. (2006). Marriage, a history: How love conquered marriage. New York. Penguin Book publication. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

18. Erulkar, A. & Muthengi, E. (2014). Evaluation of Berhane Hewan: A programme to delay child marriage in rural Ethiopia. http://wwwguttmacher.org/pubs/journals/3500609.html. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

19. Familusi, O. O. (2012). African culture and the status of women: The Yoruba example. The Journal of Pan African Studies, 5(1), 299-313. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

20. Karlyn, A. & Erulkar, A. (2007). Adolescent early marriage in Northern Nigeria: Evidence to effective programmatic intervention paper presented at the Union for African Population Studies. Tanzania. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

21. Killian, B. & Doek, J. (2002). Challenge facing child protection: Child abuse and Neglect. 26, 587-617. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

22. National Population Commission (2009). Population and housing census of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. 4, 9. Abuja Nigeria. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

23. National Research Council, & Committee on Population. (2005). Growing up global: The changing transitions to adulthood in developing countries. National Academies Press. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

24. Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey 2008 (NDHS 2008). Data for 15-19 years old. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

25. Nour, N. M. (2006). Health consequences of child marriages in Africa. Emergency Infected Diseases. 12:1644–1649. [PMC free article] [PubMed]. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

26. Nour, N. M. (2009). Child marriage: a silent health and human rights issue. Reviews in obstetrics and gynecology, 2(1), 51. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

27. Otoo-Oyortey, N. & Pobi, S. (2003). Early marriage and poverty: Exploring links for policy and programme development. 42-54. https//www.sematicshoolar.org>E. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

28. Rashad, H., Osman, M., & Roudi-Fahimi, F. (2005). Marriage in the Arab world (pp. 1-8). Washington, DC: Population Reference Bureau. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

29. Riyami, A. A., Afifi, M. & Marbry, R. M. (2004). Women’s autonomy, education and employment in Oman and their influence on contraceptive use. Reproduction in Health Matters. 12(23):144-154. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

30. Sekine, K., & Hodgkin, M. E. (2017). Effect of child marriage on girls' school dropout in Nepal: Analysis of data from the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2014. PLoS One, 12(7), e0180176. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

31. Simeen M. and LopitaHuq. 2002. Baseline survey report on rural adolescents in Bangladesh. Dhaka: Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Government of Bangladesh. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

32. UNICEF (2005). Report on assessment of institutional child care centers in Nigeria. Nigeria. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

33. United Nations (2000). World Marriage Patterns. New York: UNDP. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

34. United Nations Population Fund (2013). Early marriage in Nigeria. http://nigeria.unfpa.org/ nigeirachild.html (accessed 10 August 2013). [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

• The Dynamic of Religious Pluralism and Cultural Identity in Rongmei Naga (Kabui) Society
• Effects of Social-Economic Empowerment of Teenage Mothers and Nurture Care. A Case of Kimbilio Hope Centre, Machakos, Kenya
• Gendering Caste and Casteing Gender: A Study of Social Sickness in Uma Chakravarti’s Gendering Caste: Through a Feminist Lens
• Counselling as Social Work for Women Empowerment in Akwa Ibom State: A Case Study of Ibiono Ibom Local Government Area. Implications for Counsellors
• Motherhood: Inclusion and Containment, A Case Study