Child marriages rob young girls of their childhoods. Bangladesh has one of the highest rates of child marriages in the world. In the poorest villages in Bangladesh, when food is scarce and families are facing hunger, parents marry off their daughters in order to reduce the number of mouths that have to be fed. By mid-2020, World Renew’s partner in Bangladesh was able to train six Peacebuilding & Justice (PB&J) committees with 90 leaders to provide leadership in preventing child marriages in their communities. Additionally, 3,765 parents made commitments not to marry their children off at an early age. But for Shanta*, a 16-year-old girl born into a poor family, no commitment was made.

In 2019, Shanta’s father became bedridden and the family could no longer afford to send her to school. Shanta missed reading. She missed school. But things got worse for her when COVID-19 hit Bangladesh in March 2020 and her mother lost her job as a housemaid. Shanta’s parents decided to give their daughter in marriage in order to reduce the family’s burden. When the PB&J leaders heard about Shanta’s plight, they went to her parents and tried to persuade them not to force Shanta into marriage. They pleaded that she was still a child and that she should continue to go to school. But her father asked, “Will you provide food for my family? Will you take the responsibility of my daughter?”

Thankfully, World Renew’s partner’s work to eradicate child marriages has included developing a relationship between PB&J committees and the local government, teachers, and School Managing Committees. These efforts have resulted in the incorporation of a lesson on child marriage in the school curriculum and the provision of government education allowances to 122 students. The PB&J leaders were able to approach their connections for support for Shanta.

so thankful to the PB&J leaders. She said, “I feel like I’ve been freed from a curse.”

But child marriages are not the only way desperate parents around the world attempt to resolve financial hardships. Human traffickers target vulnerable parents and coerce them into surrendering their children; these children are often subjected to forced begging, forced labour, criminal activities, and the commercial sex trade.

Canada Day marks the start of the summer break for children here in Canada. Many parents plan weekends away or simple outdoor activities. Canadians celebrate the warm weather and the opportunities we get to create memories with our children. As we rejoice in God’s abundance, please review World Renew’s Canada Day Sunday resources to find out more about human trafficking and how through education World Renew’s partners are helping to prevent vulnerable parents and their children from falling victim to human traffickers.

Please join us in praying for the victims of human traffickers that they escape their abusers. Pray that no more women and children will be forced into a life of abuse and no more girls will have their childhoods snatched from them through child marriages.

*Name changed to protect identity.