“Before, we thought the earlier we married girls off, the better it was. Now, it’s the complete opposite,” says Muhammad, a community leader.
In rural communities in Bangladesh, girls as young as 10 are at risk of child marriage. In Muhammad’s community, pulling girls out of school and marrying them off so young was considered normal.
But when he attended community workshops on the dangers of child marriage, made possible by generous supporters like you, he says his thinking completely changed.
“We learned that giving a girl into child marriage creates many problems…
“Then conflicts occur, and abuse happens. If she has a child, there are risks…
“After knowing all these, my mind changed.
“Now my work is to explain this to people in the area, so girls’ lives can be beautiful.”
“No girl should ever be forced to marry,” Muhammad says.
“When people understand the harm, they begin to protect girls instead of pressuring families.”
“I can see more parents talking, more men questioning old beliefs, and more girls studying in school.”
Muhammad and other leaders like him, including trained moms, are so committed to helping girls have ‘beautiful lives’, child marriage is almost gone from his community.
“Before, we thought the earlier we married off girls, the better it was. Now, it’s the complete opposite.”
“Earlier child marriage happened a lot; now it happens very rarely.”
“We all have a role to play in protecting girls’ futures,” says Muhammad, a loving father who takes great joy in securing a better future for girls in his community.
Right now, you can help protect girls from child marriage too.
Your kind gift today will help run community workshops to share the dangers of child marriage, just like the ones that completely changed Muhammad’s thinking and equipped him to take action.
Because once parents and local leaders understand the risks and what’s at stake, they’re desperate to protect their girls.
Your generosity today will empower girls to stay in school, instead of being forced to marry, and help transform a whole community, just like Muhammad’s, to end child marriage for good.
Change is possible! Muhammad’s story is proof.
Please act now to help transform the next community and keep girls safe, before it’s too late.