Her Grandmother Was Married at 12. Now Sadoa Is Making Sure It Stops.
- 14 hours ago
- 3 min read
Q. Why do you believe Child Marriage should end in Madagascar?
In Madagascar, at times marriages are arranged by parents and other elder family members as well. However in some cases, children decide to get married due to various reasons including poverty, certain distractions and majorly due to engaging in sexual relations. As a result, girls get pregnant at an early age and pregnancy before marriage is considered shameful in Madagascar. So the children decide to get married in such contexts. Another major driver of child marriage is poverty. Many families have 8 to 10 children and parents decide to get children married early so that they don't have to feed many mouths.
Parents or families believe marriage is a solution to escape poverty but they are in a way sending the girl into poverty. The girl is deprived of her rights when she gets into a child marriage and in many cases, she is forced into early motherhood – leading to a cycle of generational poverty. Education should be foundational and providing girls access to education would eventually contribute to the development of the country. If she is not forced to marry as a child , she can contribute to the nation’s growth. Depriving girls of their rights leads to underdevelopment of the nation. Early marriage and poverty also affects a girl's health.
Q. What do you think are the visible consequences of Child Marriage in Madagascar?
Women face more consequences compared to men in a child marriage. I will share my grandmother’s story to best convey the same. She got married at the age of 12 when she became an orphan. Her elder brother took up the role of her parent and decided to get her married even though it was practically a child raising another child. Generally when a child marriage takes place women are treated in unfair manner. My grandmother used to say that she had no place to go if she decided to leave. She felt like her life had ended and she had to stay for her children. Child marriage is essentially a lifetime imprisonment for a woman.
Q. As CMFW’s partner, what are your experiences going to the field and what are the kind of questions you come across from children?
To be honest, working towards the mission of a child marriage free world was my first time and hence it was difficult. With the knowledge I have gained in the field, I have realised the best way to run awareness programmes is by making them interactive, letting them speak their perspectives and realities. One moment that stayed with me occurred during a discussion with a children’s group. When I asked them what they thought could end child marriage, one child replied, “By not being poor.” While others laughed, the response was striking in its honesty. It reinforced for me that poverty remains one of the strongest drivers of child marriage.
Q. How do you engage and work with women who got married as children?
Our organisation’s focus is empowerment and protection of women, including their financial independence and autonomy. In our efforts to address child marriage, we place strong importance on creating awareness and helping women recognise their own worth. We also emphasise education and support children by accompanying them to school until they become independent.
Q. What would you like to convey to the international community as a representative of your country?
My request is to give special attention to education not only for children but also for parents. Although many organisations and projects already exist for children in this context, there is no financial support to implement them properly. Financial assistance is needed to turn these efforts into reality.
About Saoda Kamildine Nomenjanahary
Saoda Kamildine Nomenjanahary is a Malagasy social entrepreneur and community leader. She is the President and Co-Founder of Women of the Future (WOF), a Malagasy association committed to promoting the rights of women and girls through community-based action and empowerment. She is also the founder of Green Seeds, a social enterprise focused on the collection and commercialisation of local agricultural products, built around a predominantly women-centred value chain.
About the interviewers
Gayatri Menon is a development professional and researcher with 10 years of experience working with children. She specialises in program management, monitoring & evaluation, research, and stakeholder coordination across government, NGOs, and international platforms. She is currently a Consultant for the global Child Marriage Free World campaign, she leads partner mobilisation across 40+ countries. She submitted her PhD Thesis in Social Work at the University of Delhi.
Aswathy Nair is a strategic communications and content professional with over 7.5 years of experience across government, media, and development sectors. Proven expertise in public communication campaigns, content development, media coordination, and multilingual storytelling. Experienced in working with government institutions, international stakeholders, and media houses to design, execute, and evaluate high-impact communication initiatives.
