Amira's story: "I dream of being a student and learning how to read and write”

Photo: Sawa for Development Association

In the time it has taken to read this article 39 girls under the age of 18 have been married

Each year, 12 million girls are married before the age of 18

That is 23 girls every minute

Nearly 1 every 2 seconds

About the author

Nawal Mdallaly

Nawal is a human rights and gender equality activist and environment consultant. She is the Director of Sawa for Development Association, an organisation working on ending child marriage in Lebanon. Established in 2006, the organisation works on community development to raise awareness and end child marriage, and ensure gender equality for women. Since the onset of the Syrian crisis in 2011, which has seen a huge influx of refugees into Lebanon, SAWA has worked on the social issues associated with the crisis, such as child marriage and violence against women.

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