I couldn’t be more excited about the progress that the Women’s Advocacy Project (WAP) has made with their two new groups! They have developed a system of soap making that is both effective and efficient. The opportunities that WAP are providing for their participants inspires me, and sometime’s its a pleasant surprise. As a fellow for the WAP project in Zimbabwe, I want to garner awareness in the US for the problems that they face in their society. Mainly, child marriage. An article published by the advocacy group, Equality Now, details the reality of child marriage in this country.

Child marriage is defined as the marriage of a couple that is below the age of 18. This is actually legal in 46 states, and approximately 248,000 children were married between 2000 and 2015. 80% were married to adults.

It’s important to remember that child marriage happens across countries, cultures, and religion. Zimbabwe may be thousands of miles away but the problems that the Women’s Advocacy Project has been addressing is a lot closer than you might think.