President Julius Maada Bio has commended First Lady Fatima Bio for her sustained advocacy against child, early and forced marriage, while announcing three new commitments to strengthen Sierra Leone’s efforts to protect girls.

He made the announcement at a high-level event in New York on Wednesday, 23 September 2026, on the margins of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly.

The event followed the adoption by consensus on 4 September 2026 of a Sierra Leone-led resolution establishing 27 November as the International Day for the Elimination of Child, Early and Forced Marriage.

The gathering brought together President Bassirou Diomaye Faye of Senegal, Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority and First Lady Marie Khone Faye, alongside other First Ladies, Government representatives, United Nations officials and Civil Society Organisations.

Sierra Leone served as the principal sponsor of the resolution, supported by 84 co-sponsoring countries. President Bio described its adoption as a major achievement for girls worldwide and an important milestone in Sierra Leone’s campaign against child marriage.

“At a time of deep global division, every Member State agreed that no girl should lose her childhood, education or future through marriage,” he said.

The President particularly praised First Lady Fatima Bio for her determination and advocacy, saying her efforts had helped draw greater attention to the need for stronger protection of girls.

He also acknowledged Zambia and Canada for their earlier contributions to the initiative and recognized President Hakainde Hichilema of Zambia, the African Union Champion on Ending Child Marriage, as well as United Nations agencies, Civil Society Organisations, survivors and advocates.

According to the President, the International Day will provide a permanent global platform to mobilize action and assess progress towards eliminating child, early and forced marriage.

He noted that more than 640 million girls and women alive today were married during childhood, while millions of girls continue to be married before adulthood each year.

“These numbers represent a girl whose education may have ended, whose health may have been placed at risk and whose choices were taken away before she was old enough to make them,” he stated.

Highlighting Sierra Leone’s domestic efforts, the President pointed to the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, signed into law in July 2024, which sets 18 as the minimum age for marriage without exception and provides penalties for those who facilitate child marriage.

He also cited the Free Quality School Education programme, the Radical Inclusion Policy and the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Act 2022 as measures supporting the education, protection and empowerment of girls and women.

Despite those interventions, he acknowledged that more work is required to improve enforcement, birth and marriage registration, public awareness and community engagement, particularly in vulnerable and hard-to-reach communities.

The President subsequently announced three additional commitments. Sierra Leone will develop a comprehensive National Action Plan to eliminate child, early and forced marriage; strengthen implementation of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act through improved enforcement, registration, education and community engagement; and begin reporting on progress from the first observance of the International Day on 27 November 2026.

He also appealed to Governments and development partners for sustained financing to support girls’ education, protection and effective enforcement of national laws.

“If we are serious about achieving Sustainable Development Goal Target 5.3, our resources must match our declarations,” he said.

The President maintained that the success of the initiative should ultimately be measured by tangible improvements in the lives of girls.

“It will be measured by the number of children protected from early marriage, kept in school and given the freedom to determine their own futures,” he stated.

He called on Governments, families, traditional and religious leaders, communities and development partners to make 27 November a day of accountability and renewed action towards eliminating child, early and forced marriage.

First Lady Fatima Bio delivered the vote of thanks at the close of the event, expressing appreciation to the dignitaries, partner organisations and advocates whose efforts contributed to advancing the global campaign. https://thecalabashnewspaper.com/archives/64861