[The Guardian] Ethiopian drought and child marriage – in portraits

Ethiopian drought and child marriage – in portraits

A series of double exposure portraits by Maheder Haileselassie Tadese, winner of the 2023 Contemporary African Photography prize, represents the impact of severe drought on the lives of girls in Ethiopia

Maheder Haileselassie spent time with girls in the Somali region in eastern Ethiopia, capturing their experiences on the frontline of climate change. Girls in parts of the country hit by drought and food shortages are increasingly being forced into child marriage, with rates rising by 119% in 2022. Bone-dry water sources, decimated crops and dying livestock have combined with vicious conflict to make early marriage a threat to them. Mahader said: “Listening to the girls’ experiences of child marriage it struck me that each story was linked to the changing climate. Recurrent drought in the Somali region means that the earth no longer provides families with the water and nutritious food that they need. This is why I made the drought-affected landscape and dried river an integral part of each portrait, to represent how child marriage and climate change intertwine.”

A new report by Save the Children – Girls at the centre of the storm: Her planet, her future, her solutions – reveals that the number of girls living in high-risk “hotspots” for child marriage and climate change is set to increase by a third, to nearly 40 million by 2050.

Since being displaced, life has been difficult. We used to live a beautiful life. We lived comfortably. We used to plough in our fields. We used to have everything we needed. We made a good living. We didn’t struggle. We grew and ate whatever we wanted from our garden. Now we have nothing to eat, we are suffering a lot, we live in a shack house and the heat is terrible. We don’t have electricity like we used to. We are just living here in the hope that it will pass.

I was married at the age of 15. My parents married me off thinking our problems would become easier. They gave me to this man to alleviate our troubles. I told them that I would rather die than live with this man. I told them that they have ruined my plans, I am not ready for marriage, how could you marry me to this man?

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Source: Ethiopian drought and child marriage – in portraits

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