Egypt’s National Council for Childhood and Motherhood (NCCM) will launch a pilot programme to provide girls with vocational and technical training to offer families economic alternatives to child marriage, the council’s head said. The initiative, conducted in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), seeks to address the social and economic dimensions of child marriage. “Economic empowerment of girls is one of the most important tools for sustainable protection,” El-Sombaty said. The council’s prevention strategy includes awareness activities for child protection units, community education facilitators, and NGO specialists. El-Sombaty also emphasised the need for parallel efforts to reduce school dropout rates and combat child labour, identifying both as primary drivers of child marriage.
