Early Forced Marriage and Children’s Rights in Jigawa State: Legal Frameworks and Community Resistance

This study investigates the persistence of early forced marriage in Jigawa State, Northwest Nigeria, and assesses the adequacy of legal frameworks in protecting children's rights to health, education, and self-determination. Jigawa State records some of the highest rates of child marriage in Nigeria, with UNICEF data indicating that over 70 percent of girls are married before the age of 18. The research draws on the Child Rights Act, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, and the CEDAW framework, examining both statutory provisions and their implementation challenges in a context of mixed customary and Islamic personal law. Qualitative data are gathered through semi-structured interviews with community health workers, religious leaders, local government officials, girls' education NGO representatives, and married adolescent girls in Hadejia and Dutse local government areas. Findings reveal that community resistance to legal interventions, rooted in perceptions of cultural and religious legitimacy, constitutes the primary enforcement barrier. Poverty, limited girls' education opportunities, and inadequate government social protection systems are identified as structural drivers of the practice. The study argues that effective human rights protection in this context requires rights-compatible community engagement rather than purely punitive legal approaches. Recommendations include incentivized girls' school enrollment programs, religious leader sensitization, and social protection cash transfers for at-risk families. Keywords: child marriage, children's rights, Jigawa State, CEDAW, forced marriage.