FINDING HARMONY IN THE DISCORDANT LEGAL REGIMES IN NIGERIA ON MINIMUM AGE OF MARRIAGE FOR THE GIRL CHILD

Abstract

Ahmed Sani Yerima, a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria representing Zamfara1 West Senatorial seat in the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria was in the news in March 2010. He was alleged2 to have married a 13 year old Egyptian girl at the National Mosque Abuja sometime in March 2010. The incident, as expected, generated massive objection from women’s rights activists with calls3 that the Senator be prosecuted for breaching provisions of a Nigerian law4 . However this incident highlights a more serious problem: the problem of minimum age of marriage for the girl child5 in Nigeria. This is because marriage of the girl child at early stage in life has far-reaching health, social, economic, and political implications for the girl and her society. It truncates a girl's childhood, creates grave physical and psychological health risks, and robs her of nationally and internationally recognized human rights6 . Although Nigeria has a host of laws some of which of have tried to lay down the minimum age7 any girl child must attain before being married, these law add to the confusion as to the minimum age of marriage for the girl child because of their divergent position8 on this issue. This article intends to find harmony in this seeming confusion in the position of the laws by examining and comparing the key laws in this area to see if there are possible areas of interface.