In focus: Zero tolerance for FGM and child marriage
On February 6, we observe the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) — a day dedicated to raising awareness and taking action to end this harmful practice. It is also a time to recognize the progress made in eliminating deeply rooted traditions that prevent girls from reaching their full potential.
In Kenya, FGM — most commonly performed on girls ages 10 to 14 — is not only physically and emotionally damaging but also frequently a precursor to child marriage. Today, 23% of girls in Kenya are married before their 18th birthday. The practice of FGM inflicts lifelong physical and psychological trauma, disrupts education, and limits a girl's future opportunities.
In Bangladesh, the situation is equally alarming, with more than half of all girls married before the age of 18 — one of the highest child marriage rates in the world. Poverty, social pressures, and long-standing traditions drive families to marry off their daughters before it's healthy for them.
While progress has been made in the fight against child marriage, the crisis remains urgent. 650 million women and girls alive today were married as children, and every 60 seconds, 22 more girls become child brides. As poverty persists, families facing desperate circumstances see child marriage as a means of survival, forced to trade their daughters' futures for a bride price to help feed their family.
At World Vision, we are committed to helping to break this cycle and create environments where girls are treated according to their God-given dignity. As World Vision president and CEO Edgar Sandoval Sr. says, "Creating environments for right relationships between girls and boys and women and men is a path to long-term, sustainable change that will help end extreme poverty."
Every girl deserves to grow up safe, educated, and free from harm. Join us in speaking up, advocating for change, and protecting the futures of millions of girls worldwide.
World Vision: Big Dream to End Child Marriage
At World Vision, we believe that every child deserves a hopeful future free of abuse, violence, child marriage, and other harmful practices. That's why we are partnering with communities in Bangladesh and Kenya, where child marriage rates are especially high, to sustainably reduce the prevalence of this and other harmful practices. Through the Big Dream to End Child Marriage program, we will address each contributing factor.
Right relationships, flourishing communities, and lasting change are only possible if:
Girls and boys have the knowledge and freedom to challenge harmful gender norms.
Families and communities are trained and equipped to oppose child marriage and adopt practices that are equitable for women and girls.
Girls have access to quality education and livelihood opportunities.
Robust and well-enforced laws and policies exist, at both national and local levels, to prevent child marriage.
Over the next four years in Bangladesh and six years in Kenya, we will equip entire communities to transform by empowering more girls to complete their education, gain skills to rise out of poverty, and break free from the cycle of child marriage. By 2030, the Big Dream to End Child Marriage program will directly reach over 660,000 individuals, including nearly 170,000 girls. Indirectly, improved health, social, and economic conditions will benefit an additional 1.2 million people.
Partner spotlight: "I am overcome by hope."
A reflection on her recent travels to Kenya and Bangladesh from World Vision coordinating video producer Anne Gibbs.Photos courtesy of Anne.
There is nothing more childlike than dreaming — especially having big dreams. If you are anything like me, there was once a time in your life that you dreamt you would do something great that would change the world. My recent visits to Kenya and Bangladesh have reminded me why having big dreams is so important. It opens our hearts, and our minds, to imagine there can be something different than what the world says is true.
My assignment in both these countries was to learn more about why child marriage is still happening today, despite being illegal in many of the places World Vision works. I sat down with one father in Wamba, Kenya, named Paul who recently married off his 14-year-old daughter. As he told his story, I felt compassion for him. Between poverty and societal pressures, he did what he thought was right. I didn't get the sense that he didn't care for or love his daughter, but from his perspective he had no other option.
In Bangladesh, the layers of inequality, lack of education access, insecurity, and societal norms all contribute to child marriage. The practice is a complex issue that requires a complex solution. It requires understanding and relationship building. As I sat and listened to heartbreaking stories of parents marrying off their daughters, and of daughters mourning the loss of their childhood, I found myself in a paradox of feeling both desperation and hope. And that combination of feelings is how I know God has called me to do this work. Frederick Buechner famously said, "The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet."
There are few words to express the weight of these stories. I met one young mother in Kenya who, at the age of 14, had her first son. She was married at the age of 10. I asked her if she felt like a woman and her response still stings: "I have to be a woman because I can't go back to being a child."
In Bangladesh, I met many girls who have been married, abused, and divorced. All of them were under the age of 17. They feel shamed and shunned by their community, and unsure if life has anything left to offer them. At this age, they should feel like they have their entire lives ahead of them. I felt the pain of their wounds and wished there was something I could do in the moment. Yet, in these same conversations, I'm overcome by hope.
As I travel and meet parents, children, and community leaders I am reminded that in God's kingdom we all have a responsibility to care for one another. Everyone I met is capable of moving beyond their circumstances into abundance. What these communities need, and what we can help them get, is access to food, water, and other necessities — and a sense of purpose that comes when someone believes in them.
World Vision has big goals to significantly reduce child marriage in these countries by 2030 through a strategic, multi-sector approach that will help to provide access to water, economic empowerment, strengthened child protection systems, and mindset and behavior change. I know a new day is coming for these communities. The dream of ending child marriage is more than reaching the numbers we're aiming to hit — it's an invitation to partner with communities so we can live together in a world where all children are able to play, to earn an education, and to take their time in growing up.
I've found the closer I come to the world's deepest hunger, the closer I come to Christ and who He has created me to be. There is nothing more life-giving than this. I really believe we can end child marriage. World Vision's technical expertise in various sectors enable us to reach far and wide and help meet the deep needs of the world.
There isn't a greater dream I could be part of than the Big Dream to End Child Marriage — and I'm compelled by what I've seen and heard to ask, "God, what is it that you're calling me to do?"
How are you being called to use your gifts and abilities to help create lasting change in the world for girls everywhere?
Impact update: Strong Women Strong World annual report now available!
Our latest report shares the incredible accomplishments we have made together over the past year. Click the button below to read the report now!
Support the Big Dream to End Child Marriage program.Contact Julie Stanfill if you are interested in learning more about the matching gift opportunities available for Kenya and Bangladesh.
Everyone Needs a Believer® Conference | April 4-5, 2025 in Scottsdale, Arizona
Have you registered for World Vision's Conference yet? This is an exciting time as we're embarking on an unprecedented call to empower 300 million people with life, hope, and a future by 2030 — in the name of Jesus Christ. You can register now by visiting worldvision.org/2025wvconference.
Lend your voice (and your email): Join the World Vision Advocates — a community of ordinary people who desire to follow God's call to seek justice! Visit World Vision Advocacy to learn more.
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helps keep girls and women at the center of global community development, advocacy,
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in the lives of women and girls and accelerate communities’ progress out of poverty.
