Gov El-Rufai: Teenage Girls Are Marginalised

Governor Nasir El Rufai of Kaduna State has said that teenage girls often face several challenges ranging from lack of education, early marriage, complications in during birth and marginalisation in northern Nigeria.


Speaking at the World Population Day yesterday, the governor noted that a northern girl, who reaches puberty might be deemed by her family and community as ready for marriage, pregnancy and childbirth. “She could be married off and forced to leave school. She may suffer a debilitating condition from delivering a child before her body is ready for it.

She may confront human rights issues, and serious health concerns,’’ he maintained. El Rufai pointed out that the future of teenage girls, who are without education, in poor health, and with little or no control over her own body, can be derailing and their potentials might never be realized.

The governor, who said that this year’s theme , ‘’Investing in Teenage Girls’’ was very apt, lamented that ‘’the challenges and obstacles faced by a teenage girl tend to multiply if she is a member of an ethnic minority, lives in a village or is from a poor household.’’

El Rufai promised that his administration would provide the platform for teenage girls to excel in Kaduna State, by making sure that they were not marginalised. He noted that when a teenage girl has the ‘’power, the means and the information to make her own decisions in life, she is more likely to realize her full potential and become a positive force for change in her home, community and the nation.’’

“Kaduna State Government, together with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and other Development Partners working tirelessly in Kaduna State, are committed towards promoting and protecting these rights and supporting teenage girls to determine their own destinies,’’ he noted.