( Our Girls Are Not For Sale )

LIFE Foundation in cooperation with Start for rehabilitation and training is campaigning ( marriage deal ) founded by European Union and IEMed with help of.
Euro-Mediterranean Women’s Foundation

The context of the campaign

Underage marriage is a widespread phenomenon in the Egyptian society and has extensively spread in the governorates, especially with abused, marginalized and released women. It’s duration begins with three nights and could last to almost 1 year. Which shows the seriousness of the marriage contract for the girl since in most cases the “husband” doesn’t write his real name, so a problem occurs in the case of pregnancy that is a result of the relationship which is hard or impossible to prove.

Our research shows that the age groups between 12 to 16 is the most demanded in the human trafficking system, this category represents 67% followed by the age group of 16 to 18 in the second place with 33% of the total test.

The overall objective

Create an atmosphere that is able to eliminate the crime of underage marriage in Egypt.

Sub-objectives

Raise awareness among citizens in the areas with the poor cultural awareness such as in the Al- Sharqia, Ismailia and Port Said governorates, which are poorer in the knowledge of the dangers of minors getting married, through a door to door campaign for the targeted categories from 200 families in 3 governorates and 4 villages in every governorate, and 50 from the decision makers have the job of pressuring, crowding and supporting every targeted category by the rate of 200 in all governorates and 50 activists with legal and psychological specialties to generate a team of volunteers to offer legal and psychological support. The door to door campaign targets 200 categories in the governorates with the support of 3 newspapers, appearing in Monthly Awareness Programs and publishing reports and statistics to reach a clear map of the 3 governorates working to identify the hotbeds of those who break the law and to reach the fans about re-spreading that crime in addition to setting up a Facebook and Twitter page for the crowds and supporters, then design a petition on the internet to collect signatures and make known all the true stories plus what’s related to them as well as how to treat them. Train, support and supervise the volunteers to provide legal and psychological support for the rehabilitation of the girl who fell into this crime, then there’s going to be medical conversion to the competent authorities in addition to   re-raising the issue again to the Public Opinion guarantees creating a motivating atmosphere to finally eliminate this crime and pressure to activate the criminalization law of underage marriage.  

Area targeted for intervention

The villages in the governorates of Al- Sharqia, Ismailia and Port Said.  4 targeted villages in all of those three governorates, 200 targeted families in every village, door to door campaign, 2400 families in all of the governorates, average family members (4), by the rate of 9600 targeted individuals, 50 decision maker and officials in the national councils as well as women’s rights organizations from every governorate ( workshops ) by the rate of 200 officials in every governorate, 50 activists and a leader in the community to form a team of volunteers from every governorate.   ( Training rate by 200 activists in every governorate.)