Did you know there is a tradition in Rukum, Nepal, where young girls are forcefully pulled by men to become their wives during a fun fair (mela)? And this Raake Mela falls in the month of July. Yes, it makes us sad to see this age-old tradition still in practice. 

But here is good news!

Recently, hundreds of children, youth and adults have committed to adopt zero tolerance towards child marriage by taking part in a signature campaign in Putha- Uttarganga Rural Municipality of Rukum East. This successful awareness raising programme and campaign was organised by UMN’s local partner MIC-Nepal in collaboration with the local youth club.  

Hemanta Rai, UMN’s Protection Project Manager in Rukum shares, “We are working hard with our partner to prevent harmful practices such as child marriage and various other forms of child abuse. The baseline survey in our project areas in Rukum East showed 55% of girls under the age of 20 were married. This is very high! But I am hopeful and encouraged to see child clubs and adolescent groups actively talking about these issues. The awareness raising activities in the community is important as community members are also important change makers and positive influencers.”

Thank you Rukum Team, for tackling this important issue and for organising such an encouraging event.