Cultural, Religious and Economic Causes of Child Marriage in Sokoto State, North West, Nigeria
Suleman Khalid, Ahmad Yahaya Maigemu · International journal of research and scientific innovation · 2025
Marriage is a social institution which provides a formal union for a man and a woman, by which they become husband and wife. The inauguration of marriage institution depends on people’s own religions, traditions and cultural background. This paper explores the cultural, religious and economic causes of child marriage in Sokoto state, Nigeria with focus on the view of traditional and religious leaders in the state. The study is purely qualitative using specifically in-depth interviews (IDI). Interviews were conducted with a total of 48 respondents made up of 18 religious leaders and 30 traditional leaders. The study find out that the major reason for the practice of early marriage has to do with cultural, religious and moral considerations. Since Islam has its views, positions and legal opinions (fatwa) on early marriage, the issues need to be more widely discussed and debated among the Islamic scholars.