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‘The School Was Closed, So When They Brought Me A Husband I Couldn’t Say No’: Exploring the Gendered Experiences of Child Marriage Amongst Adolescent Girls and Boys in Ethiopia

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  • Guday Emirie

    (Addis Ababa University)

  • Nicola Jones

    (ODI/GAGE)

  • Meti Kebede

    (GAGE Ethiopia)

Abstract

Child marriage is increasingly recognised as a development priority given its far-reaching life-course and inter-generational consequences. Despite rapid progress, Ethiopia remains in the top five countries globally in terms of absolute numbers of married girls, with significant sub-national variation in the drivers and patterning of child marriage. This article applies a capabilities framing in a novel way to move debates beyond a sole focus on girls and a single modality of marriage. It explores the gendered experiences of child marriage amongst girls and boys in Amhara and Oromia regions, drawing on semi-structured interviews with 190 adolescents, 44 parents and 20 key informants from 2017 to 2020. The findings highlight context-specific economic and gender norms drivers of adolescent-initiated and parent-arranged child marriages, and their differential effects on girls and boys. The article concludes by discussing policy and programming implications in line with the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda commitment to leave no one behind.

Suggested Citation

  • Guday Emirie & Nicola Jones & Meti Kebede, 2021. "‘The School Was Closed, So When They Brought Me A Husband I Couldn’t Say No’: Exploring the Gendered Experiences of Child Marriage Amongst Adolescent Girls and Boys in Ethiopia," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 33(5), pages 1252-1273, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:eurjdr:v:33:y:2021:i:5:d:10.1057_s41287-021-00418-9
    DOI: 10.1057/s41287-021-00418-9
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Amartya Sen, 2008. "The Idea of Justice," Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 9(3), pages 331-342.
    2. Frances Stewart, 2005. "Groups and Capabilities," Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 6(2), pages 185-204.
    3. Felix Rauschmayer & Christine Polzin & Mirijam Mock & Ines Omann, 2018. "Examining Collective Action Through the Capability Approach: The Example of Community Currencies," Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(3), pages 345-364, July.
    4. Solava Ibrahim, 2006. "From Individual to Collective Capabilities: The Capability Approach as a Conceptual Framework for Self-help," Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 7(3), pages 397-416.
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    Cited by:

    1. Sarah Baird & Laura Camfield & Ashraful Haque & Nicola Jones & Anas Masri & Kate Pincock & Mahesh C. Puri, 2021. "No One Left Behind: Using Mixed-Methods Research to Identify and Learn from Socially Marginalised Adolescents in Low- and Middle-Income Countries," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 33(5), pages 1163-1188, October.

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