Cold Stats: South Africa records 207 child marriages in one year, with 188 kids taken as brides

South Africa recorded at least 207 child marriages in the year 2021, according to statistics released to the African Union special rapporteur who is currently in the country to monitor and evaluate progress on how South Africa is performing in its ongoing campaign to end child marriages.

Statistics South Africa director for education and child statistics Dr Seble Worku revealed that, of the 207 recorded child marriages, 188 were brides and 19 were grooms.

She further revealed that 37 of the child marriages were registered as civil marriages and 19 were customary.

Regarding sources of income for children in South Africa, the national Department of Social Development said an improvement has been observed in the number of minors living in low-income households, with the total number at 2.6 million.

It was highlighted that four million children live in high income households. On the other hand, pensions and grants were still the highest source of income for children living in rural areas.

Dr Worku also revealed that the number of children who live with only their mothers continues to rise in South Africa, while the number of orphaned children declined to 11.5% in 2021 from 14.3% in 2002.

The host, Takam Kembo, of Cameroon, the Special Rapporteur and Social and Health envoy from the African Union Commission is on a mission to conduct a monitoring visit on the progress that South Africa has made to end child marriages and harmful cultural practices against children.

The mission started its series of high-level engagements with the departments of social development, basic education, home affairs, women, youth and persons with disabilities.

Today, the delegation will engage human rights institutions, civil society organisations and it will conclude with a session with children.

“These engagements will focus on child rights to capture current progress, challenges, best practices, lessons learned and make recommendations for fast-tracking progress to end violence against women and children,” according to Lumka Oliphant, spokesperson for the Department of Social Development.

She said the monitoring visit in South Africa comes before the country launches its Women’s Month programme in Khayelitsha on Tuesday.

This year’s Women’s Month theme is: “Accelerating socio-economic opportunities for women’s empowerment”.

Furthermore, Oliphant said the visit by Kembo is part of a series of visits that the AU Commission is expected to conclude around the region ahead of the upcoming 4th African Girls Summit in November this year.

“They will go to Kenya, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Madagascar, Tunisia, Liberia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Seychelles, and Namibia.

“This continental perspective will allow them to understand successful strategies and practices in different regions of Africa so that countries can learn from one another,” she said.

In 2014, the then Chairperson of African Union Commission, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma launched the campaign to end child marriages in the African continent.

At the time, the AU Commission, estimated that about 14 million adolescent and teen girls were married. To date, more than 30 AU member states have responded by accelerating the implementation of ending child marriage programmes and interventions.

The AU Commission team has expressed gratitude for South Africa's hospitality and willingness to share insights into their legislative framework and efforts to protect children.

Kembo said: “The AU mission aims to understand how South Africa is working to protect its children. It focuses on examining the child protection system, its effectiveness, and how it addresses various forms of violence such as child marriage, female genital mutilation, and online exploitation and abuse."

The monitoring mission will evaluate policies and strategies that the country has in place to end various forms of harmful cultural practices against children.

Kembo has noted variations in terms of geographical patterns, provinces with high and low prevalence, indicating a need for alignment of strategic interventions to the local context.

The Special Rapporteur is expected to produce a detailed progress report with observations and recommendations for the country within six months.

The African Union Stakeholder Engagement Mission on Child Marriages and Harmful Practices in South Africa continues today with an event at the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund in Johannesburg.