The two-year Joint Action Grant (JAG) will support coordinated advocacy and implementation efforts nationally and across Adamawa, Borno, Kano, Kaduna, and Bauchi states.
Child marriage persists in part because girls are forced out of school. But when girls complete their education, evidence shows that marriage is delayed. Now, a youth-led coalition is working to make education Nigeria's primary strategy to end child marriage.
Today, Malala Fund announced support for a coalition of four organisations working to activate the National Strategy to End Child Marriage by positioning girls' education as a policy solution. The two-year Joint Action Grant (JAG) will support coordinated advocacy and implementation efforts nationally and across Adamawa, Borno, Kano, Kaduna, and Bauchi states.
In Nigeria, more than 30 percent of girls are married before the age of 18, with rates reaching up to 50 percent in the Northeast and Northwest. New evidence by Accelerate Hub — an Africa-focused research and evidence hub led by teams at the University of Oxford and the University of Cape Town — shows that reaching more unmarried, out-of-school adolescent girls in Northern Nigeria with effective programmes, including education support, could reduce child marriage by around two-thirds within four years. The analysis is based on a modelled investment of $114 million, which could deliver economic returns more than 21 times the initial investment.
The tipping point is school dropout: when girls leave school, marriage often becomes the alternative. When they stay in school, marriage is delayed.
The JAG is led by Education As a Vaccine (EVA), working in partnership with YouthHubAfrica (YHA), the Civil Society Action Coalition on Education for All (CSACEFA), and Onelife Initiative—organisations with complementary strengths across policy advocacy, grassroots mobilization, research, and coalition-building. Together, they bring proven experience translating national commitments into state-level action and supporting implementation of laws like the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) (VAPP) Act.
“Ending child marriage requires political will coupled with a clear path forward, not just good intentions,” said Nabila Aguele, Chief Executive, Nigeria at Malala Fund. “This grant backs youth leaders to drive collective action, and move Nigeria’s National Strategy off paper and into action — with clear state plans, real financing, and accountability for results. Keeping girls in school through secondary education, whether they are married or unmarried, is one of the most powerful policy choices governments can make to end child marriage. Education has long been recognised as an important strategy to end child marriage — now is the time to translate that knowledge into action through integrated, cross-sectoral policy interventions that reach girls where they are.”
Through the JAG, the coalition will:
Advocate for states to activate and domesticate the National Strategy to End Child Marriage, with education as its core driver
Generate research evidence on what keeps girls out of school and what brings them back in five focus states
Advocate for states to adopt and implement national re-entry policies so married and pregnant girls can return to learning, recognising that school completion for these girls is critical to disrupting the cycle of child marriage across generations.
Work with government ministries and civil society to position education as the primary policy response to child marriage
Push for state action plans with clear timelines, education financing, and public accountability
Accelerate Hub’s analysis shows that investing in combined programmes — including community engagement, education support, and skills training — could prevent an estimated 327,000 child marriages in Northern Nigeria while delivering a 21-to-1 economic return. The evidence is clear: comprehensive, girls-centred approaches offer one of Nigeria’s most cost-effective paths to ending child marriage.
“Every girl has the right to complete 12 years of education, and when she does, child marriage becomes far less likely,” said Toyin Chukwudozie, Executive Director, Education As a Vaccine. This partnership is about keeping girls in school through secondary education by fixing the gaps that push them out. When we protect a girl’s education, we don’t just change her life — we break the cycle of child marriage for the next generation.”
Beyond policy advocacy, the coalition will challenge harmful social norms through storytelling and behaviour change campaigns, mobilise male allies and community champions, and strengthen multi-stakeholder partnerships. The goal is sustained collective action: keeping girls in school, supporting re-entry when needed, and building state capacity to turn commitments into outcomes girls can feel.