CONSULTATIVE MEETING ON THE OPERATIONAL M&E PLAN ON ENDING CHILD MARRIAGE

The Child Marriage Unit of the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection (MoGCSP), in partnership with UNICEF Ghana and UNFPA Ghana, has convened a consultative meeting on the operational M&E Plan on Ending Child Marriage on Monday 30th December 2024 in Accra.

The meeting, as part of the National Strategic Framework on Ending Child Marriage (2017-2026), was part of a broader effort to eliminate child marriage in Ghana by 2030, as outlined in the framework and aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals, specifically Goal 5.3, which includes the call for the eradication of child marriage.

Among other things, the purpose of the meeting was to present and address the gaps in the data received, strengthen collaboration among key stakeholders, and update the existing operational Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) plan.

The review of the received data is essential to ensure that the strategies and interventions outlined in the operational plan remain relevant and effective, especially for regions with the highest prevalence of child marriage. This will ensure that all regions benefit from coordinated efforts to reduce, and ultimately eliminate child marriage.

It was also to provide an opportunity for stakeholders to share their inputs and expertise to refine the plan, ensuring it is comprehensive and based on the most current and reliable data. This is crucial for tracking progress, addressing emerging challenges, and making adjustments to ensure the successful implementation of the operational plan.

In a welcome address read on behalf of the Chief Director of MoGCSP, Dr Afisah Zakariah, the Head of Child Marriage Unit, Madam Safia Tamimu, expressed her gratitude to the development partners for their interest in collaborating to fight against child marriage in the country.

She stated that the National Operational Monitoring and Evaluation Plan (2023–2024) was developed to guide the government in effectively monitoring and tracking the progress of the implementation of the National Strategic Framework on Ending Child Marriage in Ghana (2017–2026).

Mrs. Tamimu reintroduced the Child Mariage Portal, where she emphasized that the public can visit the portal in order to reach out to the Child Marriage Unit.

The Head of the CMU, therefore, pledged on the Ministry’s continuous work on the National Strategic Framework on ending Child married, which is to end in 2026.

In a brief statement from a representative of UNFPA, Madam Doris Aglobitse highlighted that the meeting is to continue the work and to review the current evaluation plan in order to help them prepare towards an active one in 2025.

Dr Sampson Appiah, the chairman of the CM Portal Editorial Committee, urged participants and all to write more articles on child marriage as part of ways to help end that heinous act.

The updated operational plan will serve as a roadmap for the coordinated actions of various government agencies, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) to achieve the goal of ending child marriage.

The plan will serve as a strategic document to guide national efforts, mobilize resources, and track progress toward the target of ending child marriage by 2030.

Source: MoGCSP