In northern Marsabit, Kenya, increasing climate change-induced droughts are exacerbating the rates of child marriage and sexual violence against women and girls. With water scarcity and livestock deaths, families are forced to marry off their daughters to survive, trading them for livestock. This alarming trend highlights how dire conditions are leading to decisions that deepen gender inequality and endanger the lives of young girls, who are caught in the cycle of poverty and survival amid worsening environmental conditions.
"The toll of more severe dry spells on human lives is often unforeseen. One of the most disturbing developments has been a surge in the rate of child marriage, noticeably in communities in which there has been no rain for nine months."
"Desperate families feel forced to offer up their daughters for marriage in exchange for a camel and a few goats—an arrangement that may provide the girl's family with sustenance for a few more months."
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