Features
Striping the unripe for marriage
It was early morning as already planned and scheduled for the Ayorogo family (not real names) to give out their 15-year-old girl to be married off according to the Islamic marriage ceremony for the Ayinbono family. It was in Nangodi in the Upper East Region.
Prior to the marriage, arrangements for the ‘Leefi,’ usually consisting of clothing, sandals, personal care, and other items for the bride (Amaria), termed usually in the Hausa parlance, were all set.
Displeasure
Though the family had consented to the marriage, comments from schoolmates of the bride-to-be, school club members, teachers, and the community scorned at the premature marriage plans of the young girl and the decision taken by the family to marry off the girl despite the fact that child marriage was widely viewed as child abuse.
Through an advocacy men’s groups in the region and concerned community members, the marriage was suddenly halted with combined efforts of the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU), the Department of Gender, and members of the public despite the girl’s refusal to go to school. The young girl’s preference is to learn a trade instead.
Drivers of Early
Marriages
Some of the driving factors behind girls entering into early marriages include economic, social, and cultural elements. Families, often in dire need, seek to collect dowries from suitors and marry off their daughters to alleviate financial problems, sometimes without the girl’s consent.
The anticipated Muslim marriage ceremony that was annulled in the Upper East Region is just one example of many child marriage incidents that continue to affect villages in Ghana, especially in the northern regions.
Child marriage brings with it numerous challenges, including health implications, withdrawal from school, reduced employment opportunities, and limitations on the personal development of young girls.
Health experts indicate that the major causes of death among youths aged 15 to 17 are related to unsafe abortion and complications in pregnancy and delivery. Additionally, teenagers are more likely to die from complications such as ectopic pregnancy, recto vaginal fistula, and secondary infertility.
Moreover, around half a million women die every year worldwide due to pregnancy and childbirth-related complications, with most of these deaths occurring in high risk categories such as women who are too young, too old, or ill.
While Ghana is making efforts to promote girls’ education, skill development, and providing employment opportunities through government policies, the fact that brides as young as 15 are married is a significant concern and necessitates accelerated action to end child marriages, not only in Ghana or Africa but globally.
Statistics
Globally, 15,000,000 girls are married before their 18th birthday. In fact, every minute, 28 girls get married, and in every second, one girl gets married. It is also anticipated that 150 million more girls will be married by 2030 if efforts to curb the trend are not intensified.
In Ghana alone, one in five girls aged 20 to 24 years is married before the age of 18. Regional data from the 2014 Demographic Health Survey revealed that regions of the north recorded 39.6 per cent of child marriages, the Upper West Region recorded 37.3 per cent, the Upper East 36.1 per cent, Eastern Region 27.5 per cent, Western Region 32.9 per cent, Central Region 29.5 per cent, Ashanti Region 25.9 per cent, Volta Region 25.9 per cent, Brong Ahafo Region 23.9 per cent, and Greater Accra Region 18.5 per cent.
Child Protection Act
The 1992 Constitution of Ghana prohibits any person under the age of 18 from marrying or being given in marriage. The Children Act 1998 (Act 560), amended as the Children Act 937 (2016), stipulates also that no person shall force a child to be betrothed, subject to a dowry transaction, or married.
Governments worldwide are working towards ending child marriage by 2030 under the Sustainable Development Goal (SG) with target 5.3 which specifically aims to eliminate all harmful practices such as child, early and forced marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM).
There is therefore an urgent need to expedite these efforts in the remaining seven years as the clock ticks to 2030.
Interventions and
Beneficiaries
The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is supporting its partners in Ghana for the third phase of the Global Programme to end child marriage.
As part of that, regional interventions in the Upper East Region involving collaboration between the Regional Coordinating Council and the Department of Gender is working closely with some ambassadors in six districts, including the Builsa South District, Kassena Nankana West District, Talensi District, Nabdam District, Bongo, and Bawku West Districts.
These efforts focus on engaging men and boys as ambassadors to encourage each other to end child marriage.
Ms. Yvonne Wonchua, Assistant Director of the Upper East Regional Coordinating Council, noted that child marriage in the Upper East region has evolved from betrothing a girl to a man for marriage to pregnancy-induced child marriages. She emphasised that once a girl becomes pregnant, cultural norms often push her to marry the man who impregnated her.
The male advocacy network in the region works with community members, Assembly members, traditional authorities, and religious leaders to educate them about child marriage, gender-based violence, and the consequences of these practices.
Mr. James Twene, Upper East Regional Director of the Department of Gender, discussed the interventions in the region, highlighting the formation of men’s and boys’ advocacy clubs in six districts. These clubs have been trained to address child marriages and gender-based violence in communities.
The focus is on training men and boys to understand basic gender concepts and recognise child marriage as a crime with severe consequences. The programme also emphasises how to respond to child marriage cases when they arise in communities.
For communication and reporting on rising child marriage cases, a social media platform has been created for stakeholders to share emerging issues.
Traditional authorities, as custodians of culture, are also being empowered to address child marriages, and workshops and engagements are organised to help them address the problem.
As the fight against child marriage continues, it is crucial to collaborate with existing structures, leadership, and stakeholders such as chiefs, opinion leaders, and assembly members. This collaborative approach is essential to prevent child marriage effectively.
Mr. Twene noted that strong networks within the districts are key to addressing child marriage. However, more districts should be covered to reach every part of the region.
Currently, a total of 720 men and boys in the six districts have had their capacity built, and a Parent Advocacy Movement (PAM) has been created to engage parents, particularly women, to support their adolescent children.
Recommendations
The current UNFPA-supported intervention programmes in six districts should be extended to cover all districts.
Traditional authorities, who have significant decision-making roles in their communities, should also be supported to curtail child marriages.
The Department of Gender should receive support to upscale its intervention efforts to reach districts that have not yet been covered.
This unified approach is vital to eliminating gender-based violence and early marriages, as emphasised in the SDG, target 5.3.
Role of Media and Communication Advocacy Network (MCAN)
The media plays a significant role in promoting health and social development. Media and Communication Advocacy Network (MCAN) is working with partners to advocate against child marriage in Ghana.
The writer, Fatima
Anafu-Astanga is the Upper East regional correspondent of the Ghana News Agency (GNA)
Walk into any supermarket in Accra, Kumasi, or Tamale today, and you will see the modern Ghanaian diet packaged as ‘progress.’ You will see breakfast cereals with cartoon mascots, fruit drinks that are mostly sugar and colour, and snacks promising energy and happiness in bright fonts.
Even products loaded with salt and unhealthy fats often wear a health halo labeled as fortified or natural, while the real nutritional risk is hidden in tiny print on the back. This is not just a consumer inconvenience; it is a public health blind spot. Ghana is living through a silent surge of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like hypertension, diabetes, and stroke.
These conditions quietly drain household income and steal productive years. According to the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates, NCDs are now responsible for nearly 45 per cent of all deaths in Ghana.
We cannot build a healthy nation on a food environment designed to confuse people at the point of purchase. Ghana must mandate simple front-of-pack warning labels (FOPWL) on high-sugar, high-salt, and high-fat packaged foods because consumers deserve truth at a glance, and industry must be pushed to reformulate.
Why Back-of-Pack Labels Are Not Enough
In theory, consumers can read nutrition panels. In reality, most Ghanaians shop under pressure, limited time, rising prices, and children tugging at their sleeves. The back label is a relic that requires a high cognitive load to interpret—essentially, the seller knows what is inside, but the buyer cannot easily tell.
This ‘information asymmetry’ is not fair. It is not consumer choice when the information needed to choose well is deliberately difficult to find.
Simple warning labels like the black octagons used in the Chilean Model act as a ‘stop-and-think’ nudge. They do not ban products but they simply tell the truth so people can decide.
Reshaping Our Food Environment
A generation ago, Ghana’s meals were mostly home-prepared, like kenkey and banku with soups and stews. Today, ultra-processed foods have become the norm, especially in urban areas. Children are growing up with sugary drinks and salty snacks as everyday items, not occasional treats.
If Ghana is serious about prevention, we must act where decisions are made—thus, the shelf. Warning labels protect parents from sugar traps and pressure the market to improve. When warning labels are mandatory, manufacturers start to compete to make healthier recipes to avoid the stigma of the label.
Addressing the Pushback
Industry will argue that labels create fear or that education alone is enough. However, health education is slow; labels work immediately. While the informal street food sector is a challenge, regulating pre-packaged goods is the practical starting point because the supply chain is traceable. We cannot wait until the whole system is perfect; we must start where action is feasible.
A 2026 Implementation Roadmap for Ghana
To move from talk to action, Ghana needs this 5-step plan:
- Issue mandatory regulation: The Ministry of Health, Food and Drug Authority (FDA), and Ghana Standards Authority (GSA) must define the label format and nutrient thresholds for all pre-packaged foods.
- Simple, bold symbols: Use plain language and clear symbols, such as “HIGH IN SUGAR,” designed for busy families, not experts.
- Transparent thresholds: Adopt technically defensible standards adapted to the Ghanaian diet.
- Transition and enforce: Provide a 12–18 month period for manufacturers to reformulate, followed by firm enforcement at ports and retail centers.
- National literacy campaign: The Ghana Health Service must pair labels with public messages explaining why high salt or sugar increases disease risk.
Conclusion: Truth Is Not a Luxury
Prevention is cheaper than treatment. A warning label costs little compared to the price of dialysis, stroke rehabilitation, or lifelong diabetes complications. A black octagon on a box of biscuits is more than a label; it is a shield for the health of all Ghanaians. It is time to put the truth where we can see it, right on the front.
By Abigail Amoah Sarfo
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Natives of the Kenkey Kingdom were mad with joy. They were still recovering from the hangover of the kingdom’s loss of the African Cup when their spirits were rekindled. Their great warrior, Zoom Zoom, stormed Melbourne and made sure that every Australian refused food. And that was after he had drawn contour lines on the face of their idol, Jeff Fenech.
Not only did the terrible warrior transform Old Boy Jeff’s face into a contour map useful for geography lessons, but he also accomplished the feat of retaining the much-envied super-kenkeyweight title against all odds. The warrior had not been eating hot kenkey for nothing.
The Fight Against Fenech
When Jeff Fenech bit the dust in the eighth round, I was tempted to consider if Adanko Deka could not have faced him in any twelve-rounder, title or non-title bout. Adanko has improved tremendously, and soon he would be facing Pernell Whitaker.
Sincerely, I was pessimistic about Azumah’s man, who the last time took him through twelve grueling rounds of rough boxing. I expressed my fears to my colleague Christian Abbew, alias Gbonyo, who surprisingly had total confidence that the Australian brawler would fall, predictably in Round Five.
Gbonyo gave reasons for his contention, all of which I counteracted using the age factor. Fact is, I didn’t know that contrary to the laws of nature, Azumah was all the time growing younger.
When Fenech fell briefly in round one, I asked my brother whether it was the same Fenech that fought Azumah in Las Vegas. Sure, it was the same Fenech, all out to beat Azumah before his countrymen.
But the African Professor had no intention of making the Australian a hero. As he spun round the desperate Aussie, dancing and stinging out his jabs, it was not too long before I realized that the end was near.
The Eighth Round Showdown
Two minutes into the eighth round, the African ring-master proved to the whole world that he was a true son of Bukom. He himself was cornered, but like the tough nut he is, he managed to break free before overwhelming the panting Australian with several blows that made him crash headlong.
Moments after, the referee, expressing fatherly sympathy, stopped the fight to prevent an obituary. After the ordeal, Fenech’s fairly handsome face was full of newly constructed hills, valleys, ox-bow lakes—whatever. I noticed that his nose was very tired and had a miniature volcano sitting restlessly on it. Obviously, Jeff’s wife will have to nurse that nose back to its normal shape—but I’d advise her not to use iodine, otherwise her dear husband will wail like a banshee.
Reflections on Boxing
Because Mohammed Ali was the kind of boxer kids liked, many school-going kids often entertained the wish of becoming like him. I remember one day when I told my father I wanted to become a boxer, and he advised me to first complete my education to the highest level. Then, if I decided to become a boxer and was knocked out a couple of times, I’d fall back on my degrees and make a living.
Boxing used to be interesting when bouts were fought more with the mouth and tongue than with gloves. You had to brag well, psychologically belittling your opponent before beating him up physically. Mohammed Ali became a very successful pugilist because he also managed to become a poet. He often blew his horn across America, calling himself the “pretty boxer” and opponents like Joe Frazier “the gorilla.”
Ali made a living fighting hard fists like Joe Frazier, Ken Norton, Jerry Quarry, George Foreman, Leon Spinks, and Trevor Berbick. Twice he came back from retirement to fight just for money. It was Larry Holmes who finally pensioned him, and since then the great Ali has never been himself.
The Path Ahead for Azumah
When Azumah nailed Jeff Fenech on the cross and barked almost immediately that he was after the head of Pernell Whitaker, I was happy but concerned. I would have been happier if he had announced his resignation there and then—he would have been more of a hero. Beating Fenech in Australia is more newsworthy than facing Whitaker in the States.
With Whitaker, it might be a little difficult. The “Sweet Pea” is agile, has a crooked body like a snake with diarrhea, and stands awkwardly as a southpaw. He is known for having the fastest pair of fists and the rare ability to dodge punches no matter how close they may be.
Much as I do not doubt that Azumah can take his title, I also don’t want him to retire beaten. I want him to retire as a hero and live a fuller, healthy life.
As Azumah himself said after dishing Fenech, he is now a professor and has something to show for it. Like a true professor, I think it is time he resigned and took up training young talents who could draw inspiration from him and become like him in the future.
Closing Thoughts
I must say that although ageing boxers like Larry Holmes and George Foreman are making a name for themselves, boxing is not like the Civil Service, where you can even change your age and retire at 74. Zoom Zoom has delighted the hearts of the natives, and Sikaman will forever hold him in high esteem—but only when he retires as a hero.
This article was first published on Saturday, March 7, 1992.
