Premature marriage increase in North Mozambique - report

London-based organisation, Save the Children on Tuesday released a report stating that the premature marriage rate in northern Mozambique has risen substantially among the people who were displaced by the armed conflicts.

According to the report, before the turmoil caused by terrorism, the Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado already had the second-highest rate of premature marriage and the highest rate of teenage pregnancy in the country.

"Between January and March, the agency registered 108 cases of premature marriages in the districts of Pemba, Metuge, Chiure and Montepuez, compared to 65 cases between October and December 2021," said the report.

The report said that the conflict in Cabo Delgado, which led to the displacement of nearly 800,000 people including 370,000 children, has had a devastating human impact, with repeated reports of violence and kidnappings involving children as victims.

According to the report, the worrying increase in premature marriages was the result of a combination of factors, which includes the ongoing sufferings that many of the families have faced living in transit centres.

"Many parents face the devastating choice of not being able to feed their family or house all their children, and instead have to let them marry to ease the burden of child-caring and protection," said the report.

Save the Children, is a non-governmental organisation that defends the rights of children around the world, dedicated to both urgent humanitarian aid and long-term development through child sponsorship.