Bangladesh student to speak against child marriage at UN General Assembly

NGO Save the Children says they will support Moni Begum, a youth campaigner, for this year’s crucial summit when the global leaders will adopt a new set of development goals for the next 15 years.

Bangladesh has one of the world’s highest rates of child marriage, with two thirds of girls ending up as child brides.

This robs girls of their education and opportunities and puts their lives in danger as they are forced to have children before their bodies are ready.

Sixteen-year-old Begum is a resident of Kulaurha – a small town in Moulvibazar district in Sylhet Division. She is studying at Sultanpur Girls’ High School in Kulaurha.

Save the Children says she will be in New York from Sep 21 to Sep 28.

There she will attend trainings and meet international delegates, including UN representatives, civil society representatives, and government officials.

Begum will also meet her peers from other countries.

Her slogan in this assembly will be #LetHerGrow, meaning that “there should be equitable access to basic services for everyone to grow, educate oneself and contribute to society”.

Girls should be encouraged to grow and educate themselves because they had immense potential in the future Bangladesh, she said.“They need the support of society and their families to grow with equal opportunity instead of wasting all their potential.”

She has visited several schools in Dhaka and met several child and youth groups to discuss the world they want to see in the post-2015 era.

She wants to become a pilot.

Dr Ishtiaq Mannan, Save the Children’s Director for Health, Nutrition and HIV/AIDS, said: “Moni Begum is the voice of children of Bangladesh. Her journey from Kulaurha to UNGA truly represents the aspiration and potential of children of this country.”

“As she stands out in her family and community breaking the normative cycle of child marriage, her dream to be a pilot sets target for her peers,” he said.