Child rights advocate Elizabeth Aguil. | Photo: Awan Moses

A 19-year-old South Sudanese advocate of child rights and the 2022 winner of Future Africa Leaders Awards, is calling for an end to early child and forced marriage.

Elizabeth Aguil Tong said parents, guardians and policymakers should all advocate and enforce an end to child marriage in South Sudan.

She said early marriage violates children’s rights and emphasized on encouraging young boys and girls to pursue and complete their studies before they get married.

Ms. Aguil said this will help children achieve their dreams and contribute to the development of the country.

“Early child marriage is a violation of the girls or the children right, even some boys are forced into marriage that you should bring a heir to the family, since you are the only boy, you need to marry, and to the girls, girls are the victims of it,” she said on Eye Radio’s Dawn Show on Tuesday.

South Sudan acceded to the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 2015, which sets a minimum age of marriage of 18.

It also signed the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in 2015, which obligates states to ensure free and full consent to marriage.

However, the country reportedly with deeply entrenched cultural practices and social norms linked to gender – widely practices child marriage.

The phenomenon is said to be fueled by poverty, and girls are married off early for the family to collect dowry.

Low levels of education and lack of knowledge about the harm caused by early marriage further exacerbates the situation.

Advocate Elizabeth Aguil is appealing to all stakeholders to redouble their effort to inspire children and sensitize communities about the dangers of forced and early marriage.

“The community need to be sensitized especially in the rural that it is not marriage that makes the family successful, it is not the cattle that have been given to that family that will raise the name of the family.”

“We need to communicate to the communities that this thing is not right. So, it is a responsibility of everyone, anyone who is listening to this message, I urge you and inspire you that you have a role to play, to tell people that child marriage and forced marriage is a violation of that girls’ right.”

A 2020 government report found 52 per cent of girls are married off in South Sudan before 18 years of age, depriving them of their basic rights – and for some, even losing their lives.

The report indicated that about one-third of all girls in South Sudan are pregnant before turning 15.

According to South Sudan’s Gender Ministry, only 6.2% of girls in South Sudan complete primary school, with one out of five dropping out of secondary school due to pregnancy.

Elizabeth Aguil is vibrant advocate and the winner of Future Africa Leaders Awards 2022. She was among 10 winners who won the awards.

Some of her achievements include ‘The South Sudan We Want’ campaign aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse, gender based violence, child marriages and the conscription of children and teenagers into the armed forces.

The teenager is also a member of the ‘Girls Take Over Campaign’ which garnered support to the appointment of more women in key management and official positions in the country.

She was a contributor to Banat Power Initiative, which helped young women acquire skills and set up businesses.

She also distributed health kits, reusable pads, soaps, shoes, wrappers, torches, clothes and food items to over 7,000 people in IDPs camps and many families.

Elizabeth Aguil also has organized a security submit in collaboration with the Ministry of Defense.