Five years after Nigeria launched a National Strategy to End Child Marriage, about 1 in 3 girls are still married before 18. Government, UNICEF and UNFPA pledged in 2024 to end the practice by 2030, but progress is slow and uneven. ODIMEGWU ONWUMERE in this report investigates that laws exist, yet constitutional loopholes and poor state adoption weaken enforcement. The article traces that poverty, insecurity and cultural norms keep pushing families to marry off daughters, especially in northern states where more than half of girls marry early. The article concludes that with the 2021-2026 strategy expiring this year, this investigation asks if current actions are real change, or just promises on paper

On a dusty road in Bauchi State, 15-year-old Aisha watches girls in uniforms walk to secondary school while she prepares food for a husband twice her age. Her story is repeated across communities in northern Nigeria.

In 2026, child marriage remains a national crisis. Roughly 30% to 33.4% of Nigerian girls are married before their 18th birthday. More than 12% are married before age 15.

The burden is not evenly spread. In the North West and North East, over 50% of girls marry before 18. In Bauchi, data shows 73.8% of young women were married before 18, often into polygynous homes. Wealth also decides fate. Between 58% and 67% of girls from the poorest households marry as children, compared to just 4% to 6% from the wealthiest.

This is happening despite clear government commitments. In 2021, UN Women reported that the Government of Nigeria adopted a National Strategy to End Child Marriage covering 2021 to 2026. The plan promised policy advocacy, legal reform, better access to education, social mobilization, and services for girls already affected.

Two years later, the urgency was restated. On 16 February 2024, UNICEF, in a public presentation titled “Nigeria Takes Bold Steps to End Child Marriage and Protect the Rights of Children,” said four out of every ten girls in Nigeria are married before 18. The figure was released at a high-level National Dialogue hosted by the Government of Nigeria and supported by UNFPA and UNICEF.

At that same event, stakeholders noted Nigeria has over 24 million child brides, ranking third globally. Officials said national prevalence had fallen from 44% to about 30%, but admitted progress has been slow, with the poorest households, rural areas and girls with little education left behind.

At the end of that dialogue, stakeholders made a collective pledge to end child marriage in Nigeria by 2030. Dr. Gifty Addico, UNFPA Resident Representative, told the gathering that “Child marriage violates the fundamental rights and freedoms of young girls” and that ending it will require government officials, community and religious leaders, civil society and every Nigerian. Ms. Cristian Munduate, UNICEF Representative, said the practice causes “grave emotional and bodily harm” and reaffirmed UNICEF’s commitment to a united effort to eradicate it by 2030, while protecting girls’ rights to education, health and economic opportunity.

The dialogue was framed as a step toward Sustainable Development Goal 5.3. UNFPA and UNICEF said it produced a more cohesive stakeholder front, support for a cost-effective action plan, community-driven solutions, and increased donor commitments.

On paper, Nigeria has laws. The federal Child Rights Act prohibits marriage under 18. But enforcement depends on states domesticating the Act, and many have not. A bigger problem sits in the Constitution itself. Section 29(4)(b) deems any married woman to be “of full age.” Lawyers and human rights groups say that clause creates a direct contradiction that hampers prosecution and lets early marriages stand.

That legal gap matters because the drivers of child marriage have not disappeared. The Child Marriage Data Portal and field reports point to three main forces: poverty, insecurity, and entrenched gender norms. In many poor families, marrying a daughter early reduces household costs and can bring bride price. In areas affected by school kidnappings, parents say marriage feels like protection. And in communities where a girl’s worth is tied to marriage, traditions outweigh policy.

The economic toll is also now documented. A study by the Childlight Global Child Safety Institute estimates child marriage costs the Nigerian economy over $10 billion every year through lost earnings, lower productivity, and higher healthcare burdens. The health impact is direct. Child brides face higher risks of obstetric fistula, maternal mortality and complications in childbirth. Their children face higher infant mortality.

Education remains the most powerful prevention tool. Data from the Child Marriage Data Portal shows completing secondary school can reduce a girl’s risk of early marriage by up to two-thirds. Yet millions of girls are out of school, especially in rural northern communities where marriage rates are highest. Without safe schools, teachers and transport, the strategy’s promise of “education access” cannot reach them.

Some interventions are showing results. Randomized trials of community programs like “Pathways to Choice” in northern Nigeria recorded up to an 80% reduction in child marriage when girl education was combined with active engagement of religious and traditional leaders. UNICEF Nigeria and local civil society groups continue similar work in Katsina, Jigawa and Bauchi.

Government says it is reviewing and updating the strategy. The 2024 National Dialogue was meant to set the stage for a new National Strategy and action plan running to 2030. But the timeline is tight. The current 2021-2026 strategy expires this year, and the 2030 SDG target is only four years away.

However, Aisha’s day ends early. She says she still wants to learn. “If government is serious, let them build the school and keep us safe,” she said.

Her words capture the gap between policy and practice. Nigeria has strategies, dialogues, donor pledges, and good pilot programs. What is missing for many girls is consistent enforcement, constitutional reform, and resources that reach the poorest families.

Until Section 29(4)(b) is addressed, until all states domesticate the Child Rights Act, and until education and economic support are treated as urgent, the numbers will not move fast enough. For millions of girls, the deadline is not a UN target year. It is the next term, the next harvest, the next proposal.

The question is no longer whether Nigeria knows what to do. The question is whether authorities will do it before another generation of girls is married out of childhood.

•Onwumere is Chairman, Advocacy Network on Religious and Cultural Coexistence (ANORACC)