Islamabad: Pakistan has homes to over 19 million children’s brides, with nearly six young women getting married before the age of 18, according to UNICEF. As many as 4.8 million girls married before the age of 15, stressing the urgent need for national action.
Despite constitutional protection, the difference in legal marital age still exists in the provinces, with only Sindh and Islamabad Capital Territory enforcing the minimum age of 18 girls, a gap that continues to expose millions of domestic violence and education.
News about the End of Children, Early and Forced Marriage (CEFM) Project was informed in National Civil Society Dialogue and Communication Activities. Civil society leaders, lawmakers, child protection experts, youth advocates and government representatives have strengthened participation in activities organized by the Organization (SPO) and saved children with support from the U.S. State Department.
SAVE CHIRDS, National Director of KHURRAM GONDAL: “Real change requires more than policy; it requires consistency, commitment, and collective efforts of governments, civil society and local partners.”
Jamil Asgher Bhatti, SPO’s CEFM Program Manager, revealed that a recent analysis in Sindh and Bal Luzhi provinces found that nearly 60% of respondents were married before the age of 18.
Javed Jabbar, who retired Senator Jabbar, appreciated the work, which is a “critical step towards empowering girls and safeguarding their future”, highlighting Pakistan’s proud history of Pakistan’s pioneering female leaders such as Fatima Jinnah and Benazir Bhutto, who “never achieved such a milestone, they got married at a young age”. He further stressed: “We must wait for foreign funds to promote this effort; the determination to protect our children must come from within.”
The CEO of Spo Spo Arifa Mazhar UltOne stakeholders goes beyond a project-based approach to a continuous, community-oriented campaign.
“It’s not just a project, but a collective mission,” she said. She thanked the partners, young leaders, and saved the children’s collaboration and confirmed that “it’s not the purpose, but the beginning of a new chapter in the struggle with children.”
Posted at Dawn on September 21, 2025
