The number of girls married in Africa is expected to double in the next 35 years, experts say.
专家表示,预计未来三十五年非洲结婚女童数量将会翻番。
That means almost half, or 310 million girls, by 2050 will be married before they reach adulthood, says a United Nations report.
联合国一份报告声称,这意味着到2050年会有近半,也就是3.1亿女孩在成年前结婚。
The African Union says it wants to end child marriage in Africa. Delegates at a summit in Zambia are expected to set 18 years old as the lowest legal age for marriage across the continent.
非盟表示它希望结束非洲的童婚。赞比亚一次峰会上的代表们预计将把18岁设置为整个非洲大陆的最低法定结婚年龄。
Marriage before age 18 is already against the law in most African countries. Yet the UN says more 125 million African women and girls alive today were married before their 18th birthday. Experts say most were given to men in traditional or religious unions in violation of the law.
非洲大多数国家在18岁前结婚已经是违法。然而联合国表示,超过1.25亿现今在世的非洲妇女和女童是在18岁生日前结婚。专家表示,大多数人是违反法律在传统或宗教联盟内被送给男人。
Most child marriages involve girls, statistics show. Some boys ages 17 and younger do get married, but examples are rare.
统计数据显示,大多数童婚涉及女孩。一些17岁及以下的男孩确实也结婚了,但是这种例子并不多见。
African Union chairwoman Nkosozana Dlamini Zuma says local culture that undervalues girls and women is to blame. Poverty and lack of education are also responsible, experts say.
非盟主席祖玛表示,当地轻视女童和妇女的文化难辞其咎。专家表示,贫穷和缺乏教育也有责任。
Cornelius Williams is associate director of child protection at UNICEF. He says studies show child marriage can be deadly.
科尼利厄斯·威廉姆斯(Cornelius Williams)是联合国儿童基金会儿童保护副主任。他说,研究表明童婚可能是致命的。
Child brides are less likely to finish school, he explains. They are more likely to become victims of violence. And, they are more likely to become teenage mothers, with a high risk of their children being stillborn.
他解释说,儿童新娘不太可能完成学业。他们更容易成为暴力的受害者。而且,他们更可能成为十几岁的母亲,孩子胎死腹中的风险很高。
The best way to prevent child marriage is to enforce and improve educational options for girls, he says. That will change opinions about the role of girls in society.他说,防止童婚的最好办法是加强和改善女孩的教育选择。这将会改变关于女孩在社会中所担任角色的看法。
Enforcing the ban on marriage for girls younger than 18, he says, is necessary. So is educating parents.
他说,强化对18岁以下女孩的结婚禁令很有必要,教育父母也很有必要。
He says he could not think of his 16-year-old daughter marrying in the next two years.
他说,他没法想象他16岁的女儿在未来两年结婚。
He says he wants his daughter to be able to determine her life path. He wants her to be able to determine whom she marries, what she wants to do with her life in terms of her profession -- in terms of any choices she wants to make.
他说,他希望他的女儿能够确定自己的人生轨迹,确定她要嫁给谁,确定她在职业方面,在任何她想做出的选择方面要做些什么。
Cornelius Williams says, "I wish that for all girls in Africa."
威廉姆斯表示,“我希望所有非洲女孩也能实现这点。”
I'm Kelly Jean Kelly.
我是凯利·吉恩·凯利。(51VOA.COM对本文翻译保留全部权利,未经授权请勿转载,违者必究!)
By VOA29 November, 2015
The number of girls married in Africa is expected to double in the next 35 years, experts say.
That means almost half, or 310 million girls, by 2050 will be married before they reach adulthood, says a United Nations report.
The African Union says it wants to end child marriage in Africa. Delegates at a summit in Zambia are expected to set 18 years old as the lowest legal age for marriage across the continent.
Marriage before age 18 is already against the law in most African countries. Yet the UN says more 125 million African women and girls alive today were married before their 18th birthday. Experts say most were given to men in traditional or religious unions in violation of the law.
A 15-year-old pregnant girl holds hands with her 20-year-old husband-to-be in Mozambique, Nov. 18, 2015. (AP)
Most child marriages involve girls, statistics show. Some boys ages 17 and younger do get married, but examples are rare.
African Union chairwoman Nkosozana Dlamini Zuma says local culture that undervalues girls and women is to blame. Poverty and lack of education are also responsible, experts say.
Cornelius Williams is associate director of child protection at UNICEF. He says studies show child marriage can be deadly.
Child brides are less likely to finish school, he explains. They are more likely to become victims of violence. And, they are more likely to become teenage mothers, with a high risk of their children being stillborn.
The best way to prevent child marriage is to enforce and improve educational options for girls, he says. That will change opinions about the role of girls in society.
Enforcing the ban on marriage for girls younger than 18, he says, is necessary. So is educating parents.
He says he could not think of his 16-year-old daughter marrying in the next two years.
He says he wants his daughter to be able to determine her life path. He wants her to be able to determine whom she marries, what she wants to do with her life in terms of her profession -- in terms of any choices she wants to make.
Cornelius Williams says, "I wish that for all girls in Africa."
I'm Kelly Jean Kelly.
VOA's Anita Powell reported on this story for VOANews.com. George Grow adapted her report for Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor.
We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section or post on 51VOA.COM.
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Words in This Story
bride – n. a women who just married or who plans to be married
role – n. position, the part that someone or something has in an activity or situation
conceive – v. to think of or to create something in one's mind
determine – v. to decide something; to be the cause of something
profession – n. a job that requires special education or training