An investigation into the factors leading to child marriages/pregnancies in the farming compounds. A case study of Bindura district, Zimbabwe.

Objectives

Zimbabwe has adopted a progressive Constitution which enshrines gender equality. Section 78 of the Constitution (Marriage Rights) sets a minimum age for marriage at 18 and prohibits forced marriage. It states: “no person shall be compelled to marry against their will”. However, this has not been achievable

as the increase of child marriages continues.

Prevalence is highest in Mashonaland Central (50 percent) which indicates the need for effective

strategies and collaboration to mitigate child pregnancy in the district. The high prevalence of child

marriage in Zimbabwe is inconsistent with the country’s growth and development aspirations.

Child marriage results in higher rates of violence in marriage; the increased prevalence of HIV; lack

of personal and economic autonomy; limited participation in development; limited decision-making in

relation to their own lives among other intersecting issues that come with child marriages.

The research was aimed at investigating the causes of child marriages/ pregnancies in Bindura District,

Zimbabwe. The study objectives focused on the causes of child marriages, determine the availability of

Sexual Reproductive Health services and to establish strategies that can be used to address the issues of

child marriages/ pregnancies.

A youth-led research methodology was utilized in this study, in which five young people from Bindura

District led all the research processes which include determining the research focus, designing

research questions, data collection, data analysis, data validation, and convening conversations for

action.

Findings

The research results showed that causes of child marriages/ pregnancies are linked to economic hardships, massive gold panning activities, lack of education, lack of supervision from parents, unbalanced gender roles, COVID-19 lockdown restrictions, limited access to SRH services and unfriendly youth services at health institutions.

For the solutions to child marriages/pregnancies to result in lasting change, the way in which farming

compound communities are monitored, and managed socially and economically must be transformed.

Young people in the farming compounds should demand more space to inform and influence the

government sector.

Young people can play a pivotal role in this transformational change, not just in giving ideas.

They can provide information about their experiences at the grassroots level, and they can influence

the design of the enabling environment to harness the potential of livelihood innovation and design.

Recommendations

The study recommends the adoption of strategies to mitigate child marriages/pregnancies, youth

empowerment, the creation of youth hubs, parent-to-child communication training and awareness,

continuous awareness campaigns, peer-to-peer education, and the creation of an enabling policy

environment. Looking forward, the key findings in this study suggest that there may be a need to do a

deep dive into all of these to see the extent to which each of these issues contributes to the issue of

child marriages/ pregnancies.

More research around the intersectionalities of child marriages will be crucial to

gaining a deeper understanding into the challenges that young people face in similar circumstances face.