Child Marriages Reduce in Chikwanda Village.

By Masauso Mkwayaya

 

Child Marriages in Chief Chikwanda's Chiefdom  of the Bemba speaking people in Mpika District of Muchinga Province  have drastically reduced.

 

The Chiefdom is now only recording about 3 cases of Child Marriages every month compared to the over 15 cases recorded the same period a few years ago.

 

Scratching his well-manicured hair and clad in a black suit, the happy looking Chief Chikwanda revealed that cases of Child Marriages have reduced because of the Child Marriage By-Laws that his Chiefdom has put in place to deter would be perpetrators.

 

 One of such By-Law is a law that calls for the revocation of Land from a family that marries off an underage Child.

 

“ On the land application form, we have attached some rules that everyone applying for land is expected to follow, for instance a family that marries off their children, is expected to retain any land in the possession to the chiefdom” Chief Chikwanda said.

 

This can also be attributed to  the Anti-GBV and Child Marriages Committee that helps  in dealing with any Child Rights Issues in the area.

 

The Chief''s Committee members are able to effectively identify Infringements on Children's rights because of the training that they received from World Vision on Child Rights Issues a few years ago.

 

The Chikwanda Chiefdom says it is very thankful to World Vision for imparting skills in its subject who are now well vested with Child Rights related issues.

 

“ We are very thankful to Wolrd Vision Zambia who have helped us form to form Anti GBV Clubs in Schools, where headteachers are playing the focal point role between the schools and the chiefdom” Chief Chikwanda said.

 

Chief CHIKWANDA has however complained that his committee finds it difficult to extend their services to the entire Chikwanda Chiefdom because they do not have transport.Chikwanda Chiefdom is about 72 square kilometers as such it is difficult to reach other areas without a motor vehicle.

 Government and other NGO's  should therefore cheep in and assist the Chiefdom with a vehicle which will help the people spearheading the Anti GBV and Child Marriages activities to easily move around.The Chief said this during a meeting with his GBV committee, who met him in a concrete shelter outside his palace that overlooks some hills.

The Chikwanda palace is located about 15 kilometers on the eastern side of Mpika Central Business District .