The Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) has intensified community sensitisation and engagement across Ghana, urging stakeholders to arm themselves with knowledge to fight early and forced marriages of young females, a trend the Commission says is on the rise in many communities.
CHRAJ officials warned that individuals involved in such practices must desist and called on communities to stand together against these customs, which often push girls into marriage without their consent, jeopardising their futures.
By drawing on community input, CHRAJ hopes to devise locally‑driven solutions that can reduce or eliminate gender‑based violence and related issues. During a recent engagement in Asokore Mampong Municipality, officials were shocked to learn that more than 100 teenage pregnancies had been recorded between January and July 2026.
The forum brought together traditional and religious leaders, peer educators, social welfare officers, legal practitioners and NGOs working in social justice and gender fields, sparking discussions on the surge in teenage pregnancies and early forced marriages.
Deputy Commissioner Mercy Larbi urged greater community support to protect vulnerable girls. “Let the people know the problem within the community and also give them the opportunity to proffer solutions,” she said. “If you were inside, you could hear the lady from the Ministry of Health saying that from January to July, they have received 141 teenage pregnancies. This is the ones that are going to the hospital. So if from January to July is 141, I don’t know what we are going to have at the end of the year.”
CHRAJ’s campaign will continue to engage local leaders and civil society, aiming to curb the alarming rise in forced marriages and teenage pregnancies across Ghana.
