The earthquake that hit Nepal on Saturday, April 25th left devastation in its wake. According to CNN, eight million have been impacted with over 4,300 losing their lives in the catastrophe.
Nepal is a country in Southeast Asia known for its mountains, including eight of the world’s ten tallest, one of which is Mount Everest.
But Nepal has a spot in another not-so-great Top Ten. According to UNICEF, Nepal has one of ten highest rates of child marriage in the world. Forty-one percent of girls in Nepal are married before their eighteenth birthday. Child marriage robs girls of education and opportunity. It keeps them in poverty and endangers their health. Read more about how girls in Nepal are fighting for their right to remain a child: From IPS News - By Girls, For Girls – Nepal’s Teenagers Say No to Child Marriage.