THE WELLBEING FOUNDATION POSITION STATEMENT ON THE NIGERIA SENATE RESOLUTION TO RETAIN THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION 29 (4) (b) OF THE CONSTITUTION OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA, 1999 (AS AMENDED)

Following the announcement on Wednesday, 17th July, 2013, that the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria reached a resolution to retain the provisions of Section 29 (4) (b) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), hereafter referred to as ‘the Constitution of Nigeria,’ that states: “any woman who is married shall be deemed to be of full age,” and, therefore, legitimizes ‘child marriage’; the Wellbeing Foundation wishes to express grave concern over this position, as it greatly disenfranchises our girls and women, encouraging child marriages which robs girls of a good education, optimal health, opportunities for socio-economic empowerment, and violates their human rights to security and protection from all forms of physical and mental abuse.

In line with The Wellbeing Foundation’s stated position by it’s Founder-President, Her Excellency Mrs Oluwatoyin Saraki on 17th July, 2013 and our long-standing policy in support of the Girl Child, we call for an urgent amendment to this section of the Constitution of Nigeria, for clarification purposes, and to eliminate all forms of equivocation that can and will promote the continued abuse of Nigerian girls through child marriage. The Wellbeing Foundation equally rejects any form of stigmatization of married minors, thus we seek for exceptional and increased protection of child rights and citizenship benefits for all existing married minors. We look to the House of Representative of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as well as State House of Representatives, all over the country, to support our Call To Action to this end:

http://tinyurl.com/lo7m9k9

Further still, Section 29 (4) (b) contradicts conventions that the Federal Republic of Nigeria is a signatory to, which profess, as commitments, the protection of the rights of girls and women from all forms of abuse, neglect or discrimination, as well as providing the best-available opportunities for self-actualization and fulfillment, through education and other means. These conventions include:

• the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC),

• the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (UNCEDAW),

• the UNESCO Convention Against Discrimination in Education (CADE), and

• the United Nations International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR)

The evidence is clear that child marriages deny girls of an opportunity to complete an education, thereby directly diminishing their chances at a good life. According to the Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey 2008, there is an inverse relationship between educational attainment of women aged 15-49 years and the median age at first marriage. Also, girls married early experience social isolation that is detrimental to families and communities, and, ultimately, the nation as a whole . Education is the vital life-blood of any society, and the education of women are, in particular, shown to be more decisive in determining health and wellness outcomes for families, communities, and nations, especially developing nations like Nigeria. Our country must not only strive to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), especially those of achieving universal basic education (Goal 2); promoting gender equality and empowering women (Goal 3); reducing child mortality (Goal 4); reducing maternal mortality (Goal 5), we must also be seen, especially by the international community, to strive as such. Child marriages severely compromise a girl’s chances at education; is discriminatory against girls; and increases a girl’s chances of dying from child birth. The government of Nigeria (including the legislature) must, therefore, act now to amend Section 29 (4) (b), to show our country’s true commitment to the attainment of the MDGs.

It is also widely agreed that child marriages are detrimental to a girl’s health, by a direct effect. Young girls, by virtue of the fact that their bodies are not yet fully developed, run a high risk of developing complications in pregnancy and childbirth, compared to women . Such complications include prolonged and obstructed labour, bleeding, and even death. Vesico-vaginal fistula (VVF) has been shown by several studies to be much more common among girl-mothers and adolescent-mothers, due to their increased propensity to suffer obstructed labour, a common complication of pregnancy in an immature woman, with a small pelvis. Girls who are married young are also more vulnerable to contracting sexually transmissible infections (STIs), including HIV/AIDS . The chain reaction that results from a mother’s ill-health also have direct effects on income-generation, especially in Nigeria where the informal sector, mainly driven by women and girls, has contributed largely to household income . Women and girls who suffer from VVF are isolated due to their constant leakages, thereby severely compromising their ability to earn, worsening poverty and socio-economic deprivation. Therefore, there is an urgent need for the amendment of Section 29 (4) (b) of the Constitution of Nigeria, if the government must keep to its word of ensuring good health and economic prosperity for its people.

In line with the Foundation’s long-standing policy we shall continue to strive for improved wellbeing of the girl-child by protecting their rights to security; protection from all forms of physical and mental abuse; education; health; and social and economic empowerment, irrespective of their religious or cultural backgrounds. A girl is a girl, not a woman; she is a girl irrespective of her creed, cultural background, tradition, socio-economic status, educational attainment, tribal origins or religious affiliations. The Wellbeing Foundation firmly holds that all children should be nurtured, nourished, educated and empowered to adulthood, and the government of Nigeria owes these to all its children (boys and girls), without prejudice.

The Wellbeing Foundation also issues this clarion call to all members of society; religious organizations; civil society groups; private corporations; government agencies and parastatals; as well as the international community, to speak with one voice to protect the rights of the Nigerian girl-child to freedom of expression; freedom to attain the utmost level of self-fulfilment (educational and otherwise); the freedom from all forms of violence, expressed or implied; and the freedom to attain full adulthood, without prejudice. Renunciation of citizenship is a serious and life changing decision to be made by fully informed adults, not by any minor, married or otherwise. Married minors in particular need exceptional and increased constitutional protection of their rights. Section 29 (4) (b) of the Constitution of Nigeria denies the girl-child of all these freedoms and, as such, should be done away with.

 

Signed:

 

Temitayo Erogbogbo

Executive Director, The Wellbeing Foundation

 

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