Stakeholders' Contribution to Ending Child Marriage in the Northern Region of Ghana

Abstract

Child marriage is still widely practised in many developing countries. It is estimated that the number of child brides in Sub-Saharan Africa will double by 2050 and become the region with the largest number of child brides worldwide. Despite the available legal frameworks, the prevalence of child marriage in Ghana remains high. This study, therefore, interrogated stakeholders' contribution to ending child marriage in the Northern region of Ghana. The stakeholder theory, victim blame theory and ecological model underpinned the study. A conceptual framework on stakeholders' role in ending child marriage was used to guide data collection and analysis. The study used the pragmatist philosophy using a mixed method approach to data collection, analysis, and reporting. A total of 1,465 responded to structured questionnaires, and 44 individual in-depth interviews were conducted. Thematic analysis, descriptive, and inferential statistics were employed in the data analysis. Child marriage is still relatively high (36,6%) in the Northern region of Ghana. Individual, family, structural and cultural factors influence child marriage. Stakeholders use legal frameworks, policies and programmes developed by the government, international bodies and Non-Governmental Organization (NGOs) to end child marriage in the Northern region. Stakeholders are faced with several challenges that are experienced at the individual, family, cultural and structural levels. There should be conscious efforts by the various stakeholders, such as the Police, Judiciary, NGOs, etc.. to further strengthen and enforce laws, programs and policies to end child marriage.