The federal government has proposed N84.48 billion to implement a five-year national strategy to end child marriage by 2030.

Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, the women affairs and social development minister, announced this on Tuesday night at the 2026 International Day of the Girl Child commemoration in Kano and the launch of the North-West strategy to end child marriage.

She said the National Strategy and Costed Action Plan on Ending Child Marriage in Nigeria, 2025–2030, would provide a framework for implementation, financing, monitoring and accountability.

The minister said the strategy targets the root causes of child marriage, including poverty, insecurity, school exclusion and harmful traditional practices.

According to her, Kano is strategically positioned to serve as a model for nationwide implementation because of its influence in Northern Nigeria.

She identified scholarships for girls, free bus transportation for female students and the domestication of school re-entry guidelines for married adolescents as initiatives supporting girls’ education in Kano.

Ms Sulaiman-Ibrahim said the Tinubu government was strengthening the implementation of the Child Rights Act and working with state governments to coordinate interventions against child marriage. She added that the plan would require clear funding arrangements and defined responsibilities for institutions implementing the strategy at national and subnational levels.

In a presentation by Musa Aliyu-Musa, director of economic services in the ministry, the federal government estimated the cost of implementing the strategy over five years at N140.802 billion.

He said the government was expected to provide 60 per cent, amounting to N84.481 billion, while development partners would contribute the remaining 40 per cent, amounting to N56.320 billion.

The strategy identifies six intervention areas, including enforcing legal frameworks, changing harmful social and cultural norms, empowering adolescents and communities, strengthening child protection services, and improving monitoring and data generation.

The plan also seeks to strengthen coordination among government institutions, traditional and religious leaders, civil society organisations and development partners to ensure effective implementation.

The permanent secretary, Kano State Ministry of Women Affairs, Children and Persons with Special Needs, Aishatu Abdulkadir, said the state was implementing programmes to support children’s development and girls’ education.

She listed the AGILE Project, the Girl Child Initiative and free and compulsory education policies among the measures aimed at improving educational access.

Ms Abdulkadir called for collective action by parents, community leaders, religious institutions and other stakeholders to keep girls in school and protect them from exploitation. She also said protecting girls from early marriage was consistent with the Islamic principle of Maslaha, which emphasises public interest and the prevention of harm.

The event featured presentations on ending child marriage and implementing the national strategy, alongside goodwill messages from Girls Not Brides, Plan International, ActionAid and Girl Effect.

The organisations called for sustained domestic financing, stronger coordination among government agencies and expanded access to safe and inclusive education to ensure girls completed their schooling and made informed decisions about their futures.

Data presented at the event indicated that 17.5 million Nigerian girls and women had been married before the age of 18, while 6.5 million were married before age 15.

The strategy aims to reduce child marriage through legal reforms, community engagement, education, economic empowerment and stronger protection systems, to end the practice by 2030.

(NAN)