Billboard campaign to end child marriage in Malaysia launched in Klang Valley

Many of the children who marry don't complete their schooling, and this negatively impacts their ability to sustain themselves financially for the rest of their lives. Photo: Unsplash

Approximately 1,500 children are married off each year (between 2007 to 2019) and 90% of them are girls, reveals data from the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DSOM). Many of these children who marry don't complete their schooling, and this negatively impacts their ability to sustain themselves financially for the rest of their lives, says Pelajar Bukan Pengantin (Students Not Brides) member Zharin Zhafrael.

According to a World Health Organisation Report in 2016, complications during pregnancy and childbirth are a leading cause of death for girls aged between 15 and 19 years globally, she adds.