When Awareness Turns into Action: How a School in Chapainawabganj stand up against child marriage

The classroom buzzes with the energy of young students, but 13-year-old Asfia Rehani is in her own world of concentration. Seated in the historic 90-year-old Nawabganj High School, she leans intently over her notebook during a life-skills session. When asked what she dreams of for her future, she looks up without hesitation.

“I want to stand on my own feet and establish myself first,” she says. “I will not marry early, I want to study.”

Her conviction might sound simple, but in Chapainawabganj, one of the districts in Bangladesh with the highest prevalence of child marriage (73%), such words carry the quiet weight of defiance. Here, poverty, prevailing norms, and social pressure still push many girls into marriage before their eighteenth birthday.

Founded in 1935, Nawabganj High School has witnessed nearly a century of change. Yet its head teacher, Mr. Hasinur Rahman, says that one challenge persists: “Child marriage here is widespread,” he says. “I am ashamed and disheartened whenever I hear of a student being married off before finishing school. A girl who is still of an age to play with dolls, to learn about life, she should not be a bride.”

Within one kilometre of the school stands eight other secondary schools, yet competition isn’t the only challenge. Over the years, poverty and social norms have taken a heavy toll. “We once had over a thousand students,” the head teacher explains. “Now there are fewer children, and many poor families still don’t see education as a priority. When poverty strikes, girls’ schooling is the first thing to go.”

The school has over 400 students - 285 boys and 135 girls - and teachers estimate that about 20 per cent drop out each year, mainly because of poverty and early marriage. “If poverty is cause A,” says Assistant Head Teacher Shahnaz Begum, “then child marriage is cause B. The two are linked.”

Following COVID-19, the situation worsened. Families struggling with job losses saw early marriage as a way to reduce household expenses. “Some parents think why invest in a daughter’s education if she will marry soon anyway?” Shahnaz explains. “They believe marrying her early saves costs. But it costs her future.”

Despite the staff’s vigilance, many child marriages still happen in secret.

“Sometimes a girl in grade seven or eight will suddenly stop coming,” says the head teacher. “Later we hear she’s been sent to an aunt’s or grandmother’s house and married there. Families do it quietly, without telling us.”

In the past, the school managed to stop several such cases by working with the managing committee and local administration. But enforcement is inconsistent.

“If the Upazila Nirbahi Officer at Administrative Coordinator at the sub district level and police don’t act quickly, it becomes easier for families to arrange these marriages,” he says. “We try our best, teachers call parents, we hold mothers’ gatherings, we raise awareness every chance we get. We can’t stop it overnight, but we keep trying.”

His own stance is uncompromising. “In my family or neighbourhood, if a girl is married before 16 or 18, I don’t attend the wedding, no matter how close they are. That’s my principle.”

In 2024, Nawabganj High School joined a new initiative under the Global Programme to End Child Marriage (GPECM) Phase III, supported by UNFPA in collaboration with the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Department of Women Affrairs and local implementing partner Concerned Women for Family Development.

Through the project, teachers received training on adolescent sexual and reproductive health, gender equality, and rights-based communication. The school also introduced peer education and counselling groups led by trained teachers like Sathi Madam, who continues the sessions even while a colleague is on leave.

“These discussions are new for us,” says Sathi. “Students talk openly about their bodies, about consent, about how marriage and motherhood too early can harm them. They learn to question what used to be considered normal.”

The project has also built bridges between students and community leaders. “We don’t just talk to children,” says the head teacher. “We talk to parents, their fathers as well as mothers so they understand why education is protection.”

In the corridors, change is already visible. Boys are speaking up, too.

“After I finish studying and can stand on my own feet, then I should marry,” says Mohammad Abu Hanif, a class-seven student. “A family means shared responsibility. I must earn first, so my wife and children never face hardship.”

Another student, Tahmid Islam, nods in agreement.

“My father taught me from childhood not to marry early,” he says. “I want to make my parents proud by studying, working, and then marrying when the time is right.”

For head teacher Mr. Hasinur Rahman, these small shifts in attitude give hope. “We cannot stop child marriage overnight,” he admits. “But when I hear a 13-year-old girl say she wants to study and a 14-year-old boy say he wants to wait, I know the change has started.”

Bangladesh has made progress in recent years, yet child marriage remains one of the most persistent human-rights challenges. Almost every second girl (47%) in the country still marries before the age of 18, and 13% before 15. The consequences are severe, higher risks of maternal mortality, health complications, and interrupted education.

Through programmes like GPECM, UNFPA is supporting schools, communities, and local administrations to address the root causes: poverty, social norms, and lack of information.

In Chapainawabganj, the project combines life-skills education, parent–teacher dialogues, and community awareness campaigns. Teachers receive referral training to connect at-risk girls with local child protection committees and social welfare offices.

“We’ve learned that lectures alone don’t work,” says Assistant Head Teacher Shahnaz. “You need counselling, consistent follow-up, and community engagement. If the police, school, and parents work together, we can stop it.”

The success of Nawabganj High School’s efforts has been bolstered by strong collaboration. UNFPA provides technical support, training, and advocacy under the national GPECM framework, while local authorities, including the Upazila Education Office, the National Women’s Organization, and the Union Parishad, work to track and intervene in reported cases.

“We are very happy with your support,” the head teacher says. “Our students received training, and teachers continue counseling. But we need to go further and include more parents, and make the sessions longer. Ending child marriage requires everyone.”

The programme’s reach is growing. A total of 352 schools across Chapainawabganj district under GPECM III have now introduced similar life-skills and awareness sessions. The aim is to build a movement within communities, where families, teachers, and young people all advocate for girls’ education and equality.

Asfia dreams of becoming a teacher one day and to guide other girls just as her mentors have guided her. She knows her journey won’t be easy, but she also knows it’s possible.

“If I study and get a good job, my parents will be proud,” she says. “I want other girls to say no when someone tells them to marry early.”

For the teachers of Nawabganj High School, this is just the beginning. “Every time a girl stays in school, we win a small victory,” says Head Teacher, Mr.Hasinur Rahman. “And if we keep trying, one day child marriage will be history.”