KUALA LUMPUR – Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu (Tambun-Bersatu) admitted that more could have been done by the government in addressing the issue of child marriage in the country.
“In terms of key performance index, I apologise as I don’t have that information with me. But personally, I am not satisfied with what has been done so far.
“All of us should be doing more to ensure this problem can be addressed better,” he said in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Faizal was responding to questions from Kasthuri Patto (Batu Kawan-PH) on the measures taken by the Youth and Sports Ministry to resolve the longstanding issue and the effectiveness of the strategies adopted by the government so far.
She said that, since 2020, there have been 445 reported cases of children dropping out of school to get married, with 411 involving girls and 34 boys – figures she described as shocking and worrying.
“You mentioned six strategies taken by the government. How effective are they, since over 400 students have left school over the excuse of getting married? Something is wrong somewhere.”
Faizal said he is on the same page as many other Malaysians who are concerned by the high number of child marriages in the country, and that more programmes must be introduced to fill the time of children for them to gain more useful skills.
“I am of the opinion that the programmes under my ministry also need to be improved with the assistance of all community leaders.”
He also expressed concern at the actions of some parents who are taking the easy way out of a financial situation by marrying off their children at a young age.
“I understand (the situation) and will try my best so that the Youth and Sports Ministry can better assist the lead agency on this issue, the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry.”
Earlier in his response, the minister said that, in 2020, the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry had developed a national strategic plan to address the cause of underage marriage, involving 61 government agencies, NGOs and international organisations.
The plan, he said, has identified six main factors leading to child marriages, with his ministry only involved in initiatives under two of the factors, namely to address the issue of low income among families and poor access to education. – The Vibes, December 2, 2021
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