The Churches’ Action in Relief and Development (CARD) has rescued at least 55 children from child marriages in Chikwawa District.

This was revealed on Tuesday during the organisation’s advocacy paper briefing. The initiative aims to reduce teenage pregnancies in collaboration with faith-based organizations, local leaders, and district stakeholders.

Mwayi Butao, CARD’s Monitoring and Evaluation Assistant, highlighted that Chikwawa ranks third nationally for the highest number of teenage pregnancies and child marriages, issues largely driven by poverty and cultural practices.

“We held a meeting with our donor and implementing partners, Norwegian Church Aid (NCA), Dan Church Aid (DCA), and Find Your Feet—alongside faith and community leaders,” Butao said.

“We gathered to disseminate the advocacy paper and collect stakeholder feedback to strengthen our interventions.”

Elizabeth Madolofo Chirwa, a zonal pastor at Ngabu Charismatic Redeemed Ministries International, emphasized the church’s role in addressing sexual and reproductive health through faith-based education.

“Following our training, we engaged both youth and adult counselors to provide adolescents with accurate information about sexual and reproductive health rights,” she said.

“We now discuss sexuality with young people based on their age, stressing that premarital sex is a sin while also educating them on the dangers of teenage pregnancies and child marriage.”

The project is being implemented in the areas of Traditional Authorities (TAs) Ndakwera and Ngabu, with funding from the Royal Norwegian Embassy and in partnership with NCA and DCA.