Within the framework of the ‘Prevention of Child Marriages Project:The Health Mediators Model’ that was launched in 2018, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Türkiye and the Sabancı Foundation continue working to prevent child, early and forced marriages in coordination with relevant public institutions. As part of the project’s 4th phase, a public consultation meeting was held in Ankara with the participation of representatives from the Presidency of Strategy and Budget and 9 Ministries. In the meeting, opportunities and needs were discussed for including the Health Mediators Model into the work of public institutions to prevent child marriage, and ways to strengthen inter-institutional cooperation were explored.
Ankara, Türkiye - Child marriage is one of the most pervasive human rights violations worldwide, depriving girls of education and their full potential, and leading to lifelong serious health issues ranging from chronic diseases to disabilities. In Türkiye, nearly one in four women was married before the age of 18 (TURKSTAT, 2021). Through the 4th phase of the project "Prevention of Child Marriages: The Health Mediators Model,” launched in 2018, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Türkiye and the Sabancı Foundation continue to support national efforts to prevent child marriage. In this context, a public consultation meeting held in Ankara brought together representatives from the Presidency of Strategy and Budget and 9 ministries, in particular the Ministry of Family and Social Services. The meeting focused on how the Health Mediators Model could be scaled up sustainably in collaboration with public institutions.
“Prevention of Child Marriages: The Health Mediators Model”
Implemented in collaboration with families, community leaders, shopkeepers, public institutions and civil society organizations, the model engages locally selected and trained health mediators who visit households and local businesses to raise awareness about the health risks and consequences of child marriage. Health mediators inform both girls and families, identify children at risk, carry out early interventions, and support families’ and children’s access to services.
Emphasis on Inter-Institutional Cooperation in Combating Child Marriage
In her opening remarks, UNFPA Türkiye Representative Mariam A. Khan stated; “Through our project, which engages community leaders, shopkeepers and families at the local level to prevent child marriage, our health mediators informed the families they visited about the risks of child marriage and successfully encouraged them to refrain from the practice. This demonstrates the power of community-based interventions implemented through cross-sectoral cooperation. Together with all our partners in the public and private sectors, we will continue to support national mechanisms.”
General Manager of Sabancı Foundation Nevgül Bilsel Safkan stated that lasting change in multidimensional issues such as child marriages is only possible through strong collaborations. “At the Sabancı Foundation, we have been working for a more equitable and sustainable future for over 50 years, focusing on gender equality for the last two decades. With the understanding that ‘When a girl is empowered, society is empowered,’ we view philanthropy as a strategic force that unites the public, civil society, and private sectors around a common goal. We aim to enhance the field intervention capacity of the 6 CSOs supported through our Grant and Capacity Building Programme with UNFPA.”
Emphasizing that early and forced marriages are a violation of rights that push children into cycles of poverty, inequality, violence and exclusion, Director General of Child Services at the Ministry of Family and Social Services Ayşegül Yıldırım Kara, stated; “In Türkiye, we will continue to take determined steps together with all our national and international stakeholders to ensure that children can spend their childhood, a period when physical, emotional, cognitive and social development accelerates and fundamental life skills are shaped, in a safe and supportive environment.”
Director General on the Status of Women at the Ministry of Family and Social Services Süreyya Erkan, emphasized: “We continue our efforts to combat violence against women which is an explicit violation of human rights, under the principle of zero tolerance. Building on the gains achieved through past experiences, we have developed the 5th National Action Plan using an evidence-based, innovative, sustainable, and participatory approach, structured around an ‘Axis-Based Intersectional Model.’ Through our risk-focused proactive interventions, specialized and effective response capacity, holistic policies that incorporate local dynamics, and community-based awareness-raising activities, our ultimate goal is to establish a lasting system of values and behaviors across all segments of society that rejects violence and upholds respect.”
Scaling Up the Health Mediators Model
Following the opening remarks, the Health Mediators Model, which has reached 23,000 people since 2018 through the project implemented by UNFPA and the Sabancı Foundation, was presented. Its implementation steps and contributions to preventing child marriage were outlined. In addition, examples of successful practices of relevant public institutions in preventing child marriage were shared.
During the meeting, a group exercise was conducted to explore the opportunities and needs for integrating the Health Mediators Model into the work of public institutions to prevent child marriage, with the aim of developing a joint roadmap to strengthen inter institutional cooperation. In line with this roadmap, participants also discussed how the Health Mediators Model could be included in local level public sector efforts to prevent child, early and forced marriages and how cooperation among institutions could be further strengthened.
UNFPA Türkiye, together with the Sabancı Foundation, is committed to continue its work in coordination with public institutions, the private sector and civil society partners to prevent child marriage, which violates girls’ fundamental rights such as education, health and protection, and limits their potential and future opportunities.
