Effects of Early Marriages on the Education of Primary School Girls in Buna Sub-county, Wajir County, Kenya.

Abstract

Kenya has performed fairly well in promoting the education of her people especially at the basic level nationally. However, impressive as it is, this picture hides major disparities in the regions especially in the arid and semi-arid areas (ASALs). Gender disparities are quite glaring because of the effects of some of the harmful and retrogressive traditional practices like female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C and early marriages that girls are subjected to at a tender age. This study examined the effects of early marriages on the primary education of girls in Buna Sub-County, Wajir County. Apart from establishing the causes of early marriages, the study also looked at its impact on participation and completion of girls in the sub county as well as establishing some of the possible solutions to the problem of early marriages and the education of girls in Buna Sub County. Descriptive research design was used to execute the study. Simple random sampling method realized a sample size of 159 (114 standard seven and eight pupils, 39 teachers, and 6 headteachers) drawn from six schools. The total respondents for the study were 133 (97 pupils, 30 teachers, and 6 headteachers) which were drawn from the four schools that participated in the study. Data was collected by use of three sets of questionnaires (for pupils, teachers and head teachers), and analyzed by Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The findings of the present project were mainly presented in the descriptive statistical format using tables, pie charts and graphs. The study revealed that early marriages were real in Buna Sub-County and they have negatively affected the education of girls. This resulted from poverty, high levels of illiteracy, regional customs as well as the retrogressive traditional customs. The Somali community generally socializes its girls for domestic duties so that they make good wives once they get married. Girls are generally viewed negatively by members of the community who feel that educating them is like educating someone else’s wife and therefore preference will be given to the boys over girls when both cannot be supported in school. The predominant Muslim religious beliefs in the area also subject these girls to retrogressive practices such as FGM/C that is commonly seen as an immediate preparation for early marriages. The completion rates were found to be poor due to early marriages which happen when girls are between the age 14 and 17 years. The girls are kept out of school despite free primary education and terminate their schooling before completing 12 years of compulsory learning. Unfortunately, this works against the high hopes and aspirations that many primary school pupils in Buna Sub-County hold. Some of the key intervention measures to the problem of early marriages are; strengthening guidance and counseling services in schools to offer support to girls, offering conditional cash transfers both to the girls and parents, having more female teachers in schools to incentivize the girls as role models, sensitizing parents and the entire community on the risks that girls get subjected to by engaging in early marriages, and punishing the offenders. The study commended punitive measures be put in place for deterrence purposes. A part from this the community ought to be sensitized, first on the harmful effects of early marriages and secondly on the need to change the negative attitude they hold not just towards the girls but to their education in particular.