Rutendo Chirume
MASVINGO-Despite the efforts put in place by the government to end Gender Based Violence (GBV) and child marriages, deepening economic challenges in the country are increasingly pushing vulnerable families in the opposite direction.
Poverty is forcing Zimbabwe’s rural communities to marry off their daughters early, a trend that continues to expose girls to GBV, health risks, and lost opportunities.
These realities were brought into sharp focus, on April 30, during a community educational awareness meeting held at Nemamwa Growth Point, Ward 10, Masvingo Rural District. The meeting, convened by Citizens in Action Southern Africa (CIASA) in partnership with the Victim Friendly Unit (VFU), aimed to strengthen community understanding of GBV and child marriage while promoting reporting mechanisms and survivor support pathways.
A study carried out by Women and Law in Southern Africa (WLSA) and Equality Now, dated May 2025 indicated that approximately 34% of girls in Zimbabwe are married before the age of 18, placing the country among the top 20 in Africa with the highest prevalence of child marriage, revealing how implementation gaps persist, particularly in marginalized rural areas.
The lived experiences shared by community members during the meeting underscored the depth of the crisis with villagers testifying that poverty remains a central driver of child marriages where families facing severe economic hardship often view marrying off daughters as a survival strategy through sometimes receiving money or material support from perpetrators.
In such contexts, UNICEF states that, girls from the poorest households are up to six times more likely to be married off compared to their peers from wealthier families which result in heightened exposure to GBV, limited access to education, and significantly increased health risks, including a maternal mortality rate up to five times higher than that of adult women.
The meeting also highlighted systemic barriers to justice where community members raised concerns that some perpetrators of child marriage are individuals with financial power, political influence, or strong social connections. In such cases, even when incidents are reported, they may fail to progress due to interference or intimidation, weakening community trust in formal protection systems.
A villager in Ward 10, Fungai Mashaya said that although many people are aware that child marriage is illegal, poverty and the broader economic situation being faced by communities in Zimbabwe continue to drive the practice explaining that some guardians end up forcing their children into marriages, often to older men with modest financial means.
“These marriages are not just cultural, they are economic decisions. Families are struggling, and some see their daughters as a way to cope. In other cases, families take advantage of child pregnancies as an opportunity to seek compensation from the perpetrator as a way to ease their economic hardships,” she said.
In an interview VFU, Masvingo District Coordinator Assistant Inspector Tawanda Tongofa said GBV and child marriage are not having a constant pattern however poverty is the main contributing factor to child marriage and continues to be a menace across the district and province.
“One month, it is high the other month it’s low. With this manner cases of GBV remain a menace across. Poverty is the main contributing factor to child marriage. A poor family usually is made up of many children and the parents have no stable source of income. They don’t practice child spacing as a result going to school becomes a problem.
” Young girls are married to herd boys and gold panners thinking that they would have escaped their problems at home. This usually happen to age groups of 15 to 17 years.
“The communities need to be empowered with programmes that enrich them economically,” said Tongofa.
Tongofa also applauded the role being played by traditional leaders in their communities in ending GBV and child marriages, but said progress is sometimes affected by perpetrators who have wealth or political influence.
“Traditional leaders are now supporting the investigations in their areas of jurisdiction however, perpetrators of child marriages always try to silence witnesses and care givers which in the end makes it difficult to finalise cases on time.
“Education and training on issues of GBV including male engagement is paramount. Children need to be in school always so that they remain committed. Campaigning in schools is also a point of entry,” he said.
While speaking during the engagement CIASA programs officer Tatenda Mandondo emphasized that addressing child marriage requires more than legal framework saying it demands sustained community engagement, economic empowerment, and accountability across all levels.
“Ending child marriage is inseparable from addressing poverty and inequality. Without targeted interventions to support vulnerable families, the cycle is likely to persist.
“However, through initiatives like this CIASA is working to equip communities with knowledge on GBV and child protection laws, strengthen confidence in reporting mechanisms and challenge harmful social norms that normalize child marriage advocate for justice systems that prioritize survivors over influence,” said Mandondo
