Zimbabwe;s Senate demands tougher marriage laws

Senators have called for stronger enforcement of laws against child marriages and teenage pregnancies, warning that the practice continues to deprive thousands of girls of education, economic opportunities and a better future despite constitutional protections.

Debating a motion tabled by Senator Morgen Chakabuda in the Senate, lawmakers described child marriage as a national crisis fuelled by poverty, weak law enforcement, harmful cultural practices and the exploitation of vulnerable girls by adults.

The legislators said urgent intervention was needed to protect children and ensure that existing laws are effectively implemented.

Senator Itayi Mwanza said children should be concentrating on their education and personal development rather than facing the responsibilities of marriage and parenthood.

"A child at the age of 14 must not be thinking about where she will get relish or nappies; that child must be thinking of how she can solve maths," she said.

Mwanza argued that poverty remained one of the primary drivers of child marriages, with some girls entering relationships with older men in search of financial support and basic necessities. She said some families were also marrying off their daughters as a way of escaping economic hardship.

"Without education, it is poverty for life because education helps one to get employed or be self-employed," she said.

She urged authorities to arrest those facilitating child marriages and called for measures that allow affected girls to return to school and continue their education.

Mwanza also appealed for expanded school feeding programmes, saying they could help reduce the vulnerability of children from impoverished households.

Senator Robson Mavhenyengwa described child marriage as "a constitutional crisis, a human rights violation and a direct assault on the future of Zimbabwe."

He noted that both the Constitution and the Marriages Act prohibit marriage for anyone under the age of 18, yet the practice remains widespread in many communities.

"Let us be clear from the outset, child marriage is illegal in Zimbabwe. Anyone under the age of 18 cannot get married," he said.

Mavhenyengwa argued that Zimbabwe's challenge lies not in the absence of legislation but in the failure to enforce existing laws.

"Despite this clarity in our laws, one in every three girls in Zimbabwe is married before the age of 18. This is not a legal gap; this is a failure of enforcement," he said.

He warned that poverty, limited access to education, food insecurity and harmful traditional practices continue to expose girls to exploitation, leading to school dropouts, health complications and long-term economic dependence.

"When a girl child is married, we do not just lose a learner; we lose a future nurse, a teacher, a lawyer and a leader," Mavhenyengwa said.

He called for stronger law enforcement, sustained public awareness campaigns, increased support for girls to remain in school and adequate funding for programmes aimed at eliminating child marriages.

Senator Nonhlanhla Mlotshwa rejected attempts to justify child marriages on cultural or religious grounds, arguing that constitutional rights and the protection of children must take precedence.

"Culture cannot override constitutional rights. Culture cannot override human dignity. Culture cannot override the rights of children," she said.

Mlotshwa also condemned adults who pursue relationships with underage girls, saying society had become too tolerant of behaviour that should be universally rejected.

"It is wrong and we must condemn it at every level possible," she said.

While acknowledging that poverty contributes significantly to child marriages, Mlotshwa argued that the practice only deepens the cycle of deprivation.

"Child marriage does not solve poverty; it reproduces poverty," she said.

The debate highlighted growing concern among lawmakers that child marriages continue to undermine national development by denying girls access to education, healthcare and economic opportunities.

Senators urged Government, communities, traditional leaders, religious institutions and civil society organisations to work together to eliminate the practice and protect the rights of children.

The legislators warned that unless decisive action is taken, child marriage will continue to trap generations of girls in poverty while depriving the country of future professionals, entrepreneurs and leaders.