The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) says it has recorded no fewer than 3,099 cases of child marriage in Nigeria within three months between June and September 2024.
The organization, in a release on Saturday, said from its findings, the highest cases were recorded in June with 1,345, while a total of 884 cases were recorded in July, and 870 in September.
Though the NHRC data did not indicate the geographical zones where the cases were recorded, the release said incidents of child marriages had been on the rise and were more prevalent in the northern region of the country due to several factors, including the menace of terrorism and banditry.
National General Secretary of the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights, Gerald Katchy, who reacted to the released figure, said child marriages were prevalent in the northern part of the country because of the failure to domesticate the Child Rights Act.“
There are many child marriage victims. This issue persists largely because many northern states have not domesticated the Child Rights Act. If they had, they might be looking at it from another perspective, like Sharia law, which they believe could be contradicted by the Act,” Katchy said.
“Under Sharia law, they are allowed to marry someone under the age of 16, but the Child Rights Act prohibits this. Many aspects of the Act do not align well with their interpretations, which is why they’ve resisted implementing it.
“However, I believe no law is superior to Nigeria’s Constitution, and more awareness should be created, especially in local languages.
“The National Assembly could amend some of these laws, making it mandatory for any local chief or monarch whose jurisdiction has a high prevalence of child marriage to lose their throne or title,” he added.