- Health & Wellbeing ·
Stop Child Marriages Today in Africa
Giving girls and families options not to sell their children for early marriage in Zimbabwe
- Zimbabwe
- hello@actionchange.org
Project Summary
Project Challenge
Project Solution
Impact
Reports
Project Summary
In Africa, around 30% of girls marry before the age of 18. This contributes to high fertility rates, increased health risks, reduced educational levels and cost the countries billions of dollars in lost earnings. By providing girls with mental and educational support, as well as sustainable solutions for partners to independently earn a living we contribute to gender equality as well as quality education which will give people the opportunity to make educated decisions.
Project Challenge
Child marriages is an issue affecting a quarter of our world’s population, even though there have been some improvements over the years, progress is slow, especially in our African countries. This is an issue we are working hard to tackle as it affects so many aspects of a person life and contributes to overall equality as this issue is disproportionately affecting girls more so than boys.
Due to the lack of education and the wide spread of poverty families are unaware or have no other choice than to arrange child marriages. Due to the rooted patriarchy, girls are those who are affected the most. Around 30% of girls in sub-saharan Africa are married before the age of 18, which causes girls to leave school early; are at higher risk of health problems; contributes to population growth, and lower standards of living.
Project Solution
The greatest reason behind child brides are the high level of poverty, giving parents no other choice but to marry of their daughter to receive lobola (bride price) and reduce their household costs. This projects aims at educating parents and girls about the risk of child marriage; provide education and group therapy to girls who have been or at risk of being victims of child marriage; and offer income generation schemes to parents to prevent child marriages in the future.
Impact
By responsive and proactive measures against child marriage, girls will be empowered by maintaining good health, get access to education and reduce fertility rates. The World Bank states that child marriages cost the African countries tens of billions of dollars in lost earnings which demonstrates the potential of economic growth and the opportunity of breaking the cycle of poverty as girls with secondary education are more likely to earn twice as much as those without secondary level.
Reports
Project Report | Mar 9, 2026
No Wedding Bells for Anyone Under 18 in Zimbabwe
By Tyrone Bennett | CEO of Action Change
Mhoroi everyone,
Has it really been three months since my last update? Well, firstly, thank you for taking the time to read my update and for your continued support and previous donations to our project. You are the reason we can keep doing this work.
Let me tell you what we have been up to.
Our women-only support groups and talking sessions are hitting home. We are seeing more and more younger girls coming to us, and the response has been powerful. It is tough, heavy work, but it is exactly where we need to be.
When a woman or girl walks through our doors looking for a way out, we do not waste time. We get them straight into therapy so they can start processing the abuse they have been through. From there, we move fast. If the situation needs a legal hand, our professional team is on it immediately. For the girls who are still young enough to change their trajectory, we get them into a safe house, into rehab, or enrolled in a local school. This rescue work is deeply confidential, and honestly, it is the most critical thing we do.
Our outreach is simple: we talk. We are out in the villages, running these sessions, and just being present. That is how we are building trust and how the word is getting out to the girls who need us most.
People often ask why we do not focus more on the big policy changes. Look, we are a small team. We know exactly where our power is, and it is not in a boardroom. We provide the ground-level data and the real-world stories to the bigger charities who lead those policy fights. We are the ones here with the girls, and that is where we are staying.
The biggest challenge right now? The demand. Because we are making these connections, more girls are reaching out to us than ever before. To keep up, we urgently need to train more mentors.
We have the Little by Little campaign coming up from March 17th to the 20th, and it is a massive chance for us to bridge that gap. Because GlobalGiving matches your donations up to 50 dollars at 50 percent, every single cent you give is amplified.
Whether it is covering a therapy session or getting a new mentor trained and ready, your support is the difference between a girl standing alone and a girl standing with us.
Mark your calendars for March 17th. We would be stoked if you shared this with your own networks. The more people in our corner, the more mentors we can train, and the more girls we can get to safety.
Thanks for being in this with us. It means the world to our team, and it changes everything for these girls.
In Africa, around 30% of girls marry before the age of 18. This contributes to high fertility rates, increased health risks, reduced educational levels and cost the countries billions of dollars in lost earnings. By providing girls with mental and educational support, as well as sustainable solutions for partners to independently earn a living we contribute to gender equality as well as quality education which will give people the opportunity to make educated decisions.
Child marriages is an issue affecting a quarter of our world’s population, even though there have been some improvements over the years, progress is slow, especially in our African countries. This is an issue we are working hard to tackle as it affects so many aspects of a person life and contributes to overall equality as this issue is disproportionately affecting girls more so than boys.
Due to the lack of education and the wide spread of poverty families are unaware or have no other choice than to arrange child marriages. Due to the rooted patriarchy, girls are those who are affected the most. Around 30% of girls in sub-saharan Africa are married before the age of 18, which causes girls to leave school early; are at higher risk of health problems; contributes to population growth, and lower standards of living.
The greatest reason behind child brides are the high level of poverty, giving parents no other choice but to marry of their daughter to receive lobola (bride price) and reduce their household costs. This projects aims at educating parents and girls about the risk of child marriage; provide education and group therapy to girls who have been or at risk of being victims of child marriage; and offer income generation schemes to parents to prevent child marriages in the future.
By responsive and proactive measures against child marriage, girls will be empowered by maintaining good health, get access to education and reduce fertility rates. The World Bank states that child marriages cost the African countries tens of billions of dollars in lost earnings which demonstrates the potential of economic growth and the opportunity of breaking the cycle of poverty as girls with secondary education are more likely to earn twice as much as those without secondary level.
Project Report | Mar 9, 2026
No Wedding Bells for Anyone Under 18 in Zimbabwe
By Tyrone Bennett | CEO of Action Change
Mhoroi everyone,
Has it really been three months since my last update? Well, firstly, thank you for taking the time to read my update and for your continued support and previous donations to our project. You are the reason we can keep doing this work.
Let me tell you what we have been up to.
Our women-only support groups and talking sessions are hitting home. We are seeing more and more younger girls coming to us, and the response has been powerful. It is tough, heavy work, but it is exactly where we need to be.
When a woman or girl walks through our doors looking for a way out, we do not waste time. We get them straight into therapy so they can start processing the abuse they have been through. From there, we move fast. If the situation needs a legal hand, our professional team is on it immediately. For the girls who are still young enough to change their trajectory, we get them into a safe house, into rehab, or enrolled in a local school. This rescue work is deeply confidential, and honestly, it is the most critical thing we do.
Our outreach is simple: we talk. We are out in the villages, running these sessions, and just being present. That is how we are building trust and how the word is getting out to the girls who need us most.
People often ask why we do not focus more on the big policy changes. Look, we are a small team. We know exactly where our power is, and it is not in a boardroom. We provide the ground-level data and the real-world stories to the bigger charities who lead those policy fights. We are the ones here with the girls, and that is where we are staying.
The biggest challenge right now? The demand. Because we are making these connections, more girls are reaching out to us than ever before. To keep up, we urgently need to train more mentors.
We have the Little by Little campaign coming up from March 17th to the 20th, and it is a massive chance for us to bridge that gap. Because GlobalGiving matches your donations up to 50 dollars at 50 percent, every single cent you give is amplified.
Whether it is covering a therapy session or getting a new mentor trained and ready, your support is the difference between a girl standing alone and a girl standing with us.
Mark your calendars for March 17th. We would be stoked if you shared this with your own networks. The more people in our corner, the more mentors we can train, and the more girls we can get to safety.
Thanks for being in this with us. It means the world to our team, and it changes everything for these girls.
