The government of Malawi should increase efforts to end widespread child and forced marriage, or risk worsening poverty, illiteracy, and preventable maternal deaths in the country.

According to government statistics, half of the girls in Malawi will be married by their 18th birthday, with some as young as age 9 or 10 being forced to marry.

Malawi faces many economic challenges, but the rights of the country’s girls and women should not be sacrificed as a result.

A Human Rights Watch report based on interviews with 80 girls and women in Malawi documents how the practice prevents them  from participating in all spheres of life. Read it here.