From Edirin Robinson, in Kaduna
At 13, Mansura dreamed of becoming a nurse. She wanted to care for sick people and save lives. In her community in Lere Local Government Area of Kaduna State, where many girls are denied education, her dream stood out.
“Mansura, as we call her, is very smart,” her elder brother, Ibrahim Dikko, said. “One day she told me, ‘Yaya, I want to go to school.’ That was surprising because my father never sent any of my sisters to school.”
Determined to support her, Ibrahim approached their father and got permission for her to enroll.
“I bought her books, uniform, and paid her fees. I still remember the joy on her face the first day she wore her uniform,” he recalled.
Mansura’s enrollment inspired other families in the community to reconsider educating their daughters. For Ibrahim, it was a proud moment. For Mansura, it was a chance to escape the fate of her older sisters, who were all married off as children. But the hope did not last.
“I travelled for some time, and when I came back, she told me our father had started pressuring her to get married because her mates were already married,” Ibrahim said.
He confronted his father, who initially promised to stop. Shortly after, Mansura was withdrawn from school.
“I argued with him again, but he insisted he no longer wanted her attending school and preferred her to stay home to help her mother,” he added.
Soon after, Mansura was sent to stay with an aunt in Zaria. Ibrahim later discovered that a man interested in marrying her lived there.
“I quickly brought her back home because I knew what was happening,” he said.
But on June 17, 2025, during what Ibrahim believed was a celebration for Mansura’s graduation from Islamiya, local clerics conducted her marriage to a man named Jamilu.
“I can still hear her crying and begging,” Ibrahim said quietly. “She did not want to go, but they forced her.”
The experience left him devastated, especially after discovering that even their mother was unaware of the arrangement.
“That day I realised how dangerous ignorance can be. If my mother had been educated, maybe she would have fought for her daughter.”
Across Northern Nigeria, stories like Mansura’s remain common. Despite laws protecting children from forced and early marriages, many girls are still denied education and pushed into adulthood before they are emotionally or physically prepared.
In 2018, the Kaduna State House of Assembly passed the Child Protection Law, setting 18 as the minimum age for marriage. Kaduna also enforces the Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act.
Yet implementation remains weak in many communities where cultural and religious beliefs often outweigh statutory laws.
Families frequently settle such cases privately instead of reporting them to authorities. Community members also avoid speaking out because of fear of social backlash.
The Executive Director of Hope for Communities and Children, Hadiza Umar, said poverty, insecurity, and social pressure continue to fuel child marriage.
“Some parents fear their daughters may become victims of gender-based violence or engage in relationships they cannot control,” she explained. “Others see marriage as a way to reduce economic burden.”
According to her, peer influence also contributes to the trend, as some girls begin to see marriage as the expected path once their friends marry.
Hadiza described child marriage as harmful and exploitative.
“In many cases, older men use marriage to gain access to young girls while avoiding criticism from society,” she said.
The result is that many girls are denied opportunities to develop their potential. Even when families can only afford to educate one child, preference is often given to boys.
Experts warn that the consequences extend far beyond individual families.
When girls leave school early, communities lose teachers, nurses, entrepreneurs and other skilled professionals who could contribute to development.
Rachel Sankey Daniel, a senior nurse at the Salama Sexual Assault Referral Centre, said many child brides suffer severe emotional trauma.
“The transition from childhood to marriage is too sudden,” she said. “Most of them are not mentally prepared to become wives or mothers.”
She noted that many struggle with depression, fear, and isolation because they lack the maturity and support needed to handle marital responsibilities.
“People say our mothers survived child marriage, but survival does not mean the practice is right,” she added. “Many women still carry emotional scars from those experiences.”
Beyond emotional trauma, child marriage exposes girls to serious health risks.
Young brides are more likely to experience complications during pregnancy and childbirth, including severe bleeding, obstructed labour, anemia, eclampsia and obstetric fistula.
Because their bodies are not fully developed, pregnancy often places them at greater risk of death.
Daniel said some young mothers also lack basic knowledge about menstrual hygiene and reproductive health.
“I have had to teach married adolescents simple health practices because nobody prepared them for womanhood,” she said.
For many girls, marriage also becomes a cycle of suffering. Some are widowed at a young age and remarried repeatedly without support or stability. Others face pressure to continue having children until they give birth to a male child.
Failure to conceive within a few years can also lead to rejection, abuse or abandonment. Child rights advocates argue that such experiences amount to a violation of fundamental human rights.
Under Nigeria’s Child Rights Act, children are entitled to education, healthcare, protection and freedom from exploitation. The law also states that children cannot give full and informed consent to marriage.
Despite these protections, enforcement remains inconsistent across parts of Northern Nigeria.
Education is one of the biggest casualties of child marriage. Once married, many girls drop out permanently because of domestic responsibilities, pregnancy and societal expectations.
Although some states have introduced the second chance education policy for married adolescents, many still struggle to return to school.
Health rights are equally affected. Early pregnancy exposes girls to complications that threaten both mother and child.
The practice also increases vulnerability to domestic violence and sexual abuse because of the power imbalance between young girls and much older husbands.
According to research published in partnership with UNICEF by Xiangming Fang of the Georgia State University School of Public Health, child marriage carries major economic consequences for Nigeria.
The study estimated that Nigeria loses about 10 billion dollars annually because of the effects of child marriage, including healthcare costs and lost productivity.
Women married as children are also more likely to earn less income because they are unable to complete their education.
The research found that child marriage reduces the likelihood of completing secondary school by 23 percent.
The impact is also measured in lives lost. Thousands of girls die yearly, from pregnancy and childbirth complications linked to early marriage, while many children born to young mothers face health challenges related to low birth weight and poor maternal care.
Researchers warn that child marriage also contributes to rapid population growth, placing additional pressure on schools, hospitals, and public infrastructure.
Hadiza believes ending the cycle starts with education and community engagement.
“Educated mothers are more likely to support the education of their daughters,” she said. “But where women themselves were denied education, many do not fully understand its value.”
According to her, school enrollment alone is not enough if girls cannot complete their education.
“Girls are dropping out faster than boys because of marriage and poverty,” she explained. “Without education, many end up as domestic workers where they can also become victims of abuse.”
She added that uneducated women are often underpaid, financially dependent, and unable to make informed decisions about healthcare or family planning.
“Children of uneducated mothers face higher risks of poor health because some women are unaware of vaccinations and other health interventions,” she said.
For advocates, tackling child marriage requires collective action involving parents, religious leaders, traditional rulers, civil society groups, and government institutions.
Hadiza stressed that girls themselves must also understand the value of education.
“They need to know education is for their own future,” she said. “Communities must create safe and supportive environments where girls can learn and thrive.”
For Ibrahim, however, the issue remains painfully personal. He still remembers his younger sister’s dream of becoming a nurse and the excitement she once carried to school every morning.
Now, that dream has been replaced by responsibilities she never chose. And like thousands of girls across Northern Nigeria, Mansura’s future was decided long before she was old enough to decide for herself.
This report was produced by our correspondent under the 2025 HumAngle SCOJA Fellowship
