Project DREAM helped Nani postpone her early marriage.

In Mali, the fight against child marriage is still ongoing. In some localities, this customary practice still hinders the young girls’ self-improvement, especially those who are in school.

As it is commonly agreed, early marriage has immeasurable consequences on the educational and social-health level of young girls. The phenomenon takes most girls out of school and deprives them of a fundamental right to socio-economic development, not only for themselves, but also for their families, as is the case with young Nani.

Nani, (15) in 6th grade, lives with her parents in central Mali. A few years ago, she was engaged by her parents without any consent from her as she shared with us.

"One day, after I left school, my parents called me to tell me that since I was very young, a man had come to ask for my hand in marriage and that they had accepted. This news really saddened me because I really did not understand their decision." Nani revealed.

According to her, although her parents did not explain in detail why they decided to take her bride's dowry, she understood that it was due to their tradition.

"My parents told me that my fiancé had gone on an adventure and when he returned to the community, he wanted the marriage to be effective. I told them that I was not now interested in marriage and that I wanted to continue my studies."

"They told me that marriage would not affect my studies because my husband would let me study until 9th grade if I wanted to. Unfortunately, my goal is not only to reach 9th grade, but to finish my education first. That's where our ideas clashed.”  She goes on to explain

How could Nani convince her parents to let her continue her studies instead of the early marriage?

That's the problem to solve.

This must have been a big deal because according to her, it is difficult to counteract such cases in their community. She reveals that this is an old practice for them. But thanks to World Vision's DREAM project which intervenes against early marriage in her community, she was able to win the bet and was able to postpone her planned marriage by parents.

"I was very worried; I did not know who to confide in because the decision had already been made by my parents. When I shared the news with my friends, they advised me to report it to the authorities at my school so that they could be informed before it was too late." She adds

Therefore, by informing local school authorities, the 15-year-old girl managed to save herself from the early marriage.

"When I met with the principal and teachers of our school, they went to make my parents aware of the consequences this marriage could have on my life. That day, I was there with them. I even cried."

"After meeting with the principal and teachers of my school, my parents told me that they regretted taking the dowry with my fiancé and that they will do whatever it takes to convince him to let me pursue my education first."

Since 2020, World Vision's Dedicated to Reduce Early Marriage in Mali (DREAM) project has been conducting trainings for teachers, youth and community health workers on the consequences of child marriage.

"I was surprised by the way my school authorities talked to my parents. It was a few days later that I learned that they had been trained by World Vision on the consequences of child marriage. I am very happy. I want to become a doctor after my studies." she concludes.

Like the 15-year-old girl, the program was able to save three other girls from early marriage in the Bankass circle.

These sensitizations reached 3,254 people (622 men, 798 women, 973 boys and 861 girls).