SASA! Together Programme Helps Rohingya Youth to Prevent Child Marriage

Imam Sharif, 19 years old Rohingya refugee from Cox’s Bazar, wants to become a doctor. Long before he can wear a white coat, he is already doing something close to that dream: helping prevent harm in his community.

In the Rohingya refugee camp where he lives, there is no single doctor from his community. Those who managed to complete medical degrees have left for other countries. Imam Sharif knows this because he pays attention to what his community needs.

“My community needs a doctor,” he says. “If I become one, I can help my community, my relatives, my family. That is my goal.”

Imam has lived in the refugee camp since he arrived from Myanmar at the age of ten. His path to becoming a doctor remains uncertain. However, two years ago, when he heard that his 17-year-old friend and relative were about to get married, he did not wait for someone else to act. 

The preparations had already begun. The family had made its decision. His friend was still studying, but marriage would likely mean new responsibilities before he was ready to carry them.

Imam Sharif went to the family’s shelter. First, he spoke to his friend. He explained that 17 was too young for marriage. He talked about education, responsibility, financial pressure, and the difficulties that can follow when young people are pushed into adult roles too early.

His friend was not convinced. So Imam Sharif spoke to the parents.

“I said, if my friend gets married now, he will have a child. How will he care for a child when he is not working, not earning?” Imam Sharif recalls. “Your family will face problems. Your son will face problems.”

He did not speak with anger. He listened, answered questions, and repeated what he had learned about child marriage - how it can interrupt education, increase pressure on families, and expose young people to harm. Slowly, the family began to reconsider and finally the marriage was cancelled.

Two years later, his friend is still studying. He now attends community sessions where young people learn about gender-based violence, rights, child marriage, and the importance of making informed decisions.
For Imam, that moment showed how change can begin inside the community itself, through trust, patience and conversation.

Imam joined SASA! Together programme five years ago. Through that programme, community changemakers and leaders are trained to discuss gender equality, violence prevention and child marriage within their own communities. The approach depends on trust: conversations between friends, parents, neighbours and young people who share the same daily realities.

The sessions Imam attended gave him knowledge and confidence. Before joining, he knew child marriage was common, but he did not know how to explain its consequences clearly. Through the programme, he learned how early marriage can affect education, health, family relationships and future opportunities. He also learned how to speak with people respectfully, even when they disagree. That mattered when he sat with his friend’s parents.

In the Rohingya camps, child marriage remains a serious concern with up to 28% of girls marrying before 18. Families may arrange marriages quietly, sometimes believing they are protecting their children or reducing future risks. Gender-based violence also continues to affect women and girls, underscoring the need for sustained prevention, response and community engagement.

In 2025, reported GBV cases rose by 7 percent in the third quarter alone, highlighting the scale of protection risks women and girls continue to face and the importance of continued prevention and response services.

Imam Sharif is honest about the challenges that remain. Violence still happens, and young people continue to face social pressures and uncertainty. He speaks with his peers about these issues too, with empathy rather than judgment. He understands the frustration felt by many young people in the camps: limited opportunities, interrupted dreams, and the difficulty of planning for a future that depends on decisions beyond their control. 

He understands it because these realities are part of his life too. 

Still, he continues. He attends sessions. He speaks with friends. He visits families when he thinks a young person may be at risk. He tries to use what he has learned before harm takes place. Imam Sharif does not give up his dream of becoming a doctor. 

Whether that path will open for him depends on decisions and opportunities far beyond his control. Yet, in the camp where he grew up, he is already doing what he set out to do: helping his community prevent harm, one conversation, one family and one protected future at a time.

The SASA! Together programme is implemented by UNFPA and Mukti Cox’s Bazar across Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh under the Rising Together project, funded by Switzerland.