No Safety, No Way Out: Rohingya Girls Caught Between Aid Cuts and Child Marriage in Bangladesh

• Child marriage among Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh is rising rapidly, exacerbated by significant funding cuts to humanitarian aid and education programs in 2025.
• Refugees remain in a legal limbo, lacking citizenship and relying entirely on precarious aid systems that fail to provide adequate protection for minors.
• Data shows verified child marriage cases rose 21 percent in the past year, while child abductions and armed group recruitment have also seen sharp increases.

The Impact of Funding and School Closures

• The 2025 USAID funding cuts forced the closure of many UNICEF learning centers, leaving girls with no access to formal education.
• Educators report a direct correlation between school closures and dropout rates, as idle children are frequently married off by families seeking stability or economic relief.
• Once married, girls are typically forbidden by in-laws from returning to the classroom, effectively ending their educational prospects permanently.

Economic and Social Drivers

• The traditional high costs of marriage—such as large dowries and military bribes—have collapsed in the camps, removing financial barriers that previously acted as a brake on child marriage.
• A ration-based food security system allows men to support multiple wives without the traditional economic burden of providing individual income, encouraging polygamy.
• Community leaders (majhees) often leverage their control over food distribution and resources to pressure vulnerable families into marriages.

Religious and Cultural Framing

• Religious beliefs regarding puberty frequently dictate that delaying marriage is spiritually dangerous, leading parents to marry off children before they reach adulthood.
• There is a strong parental preference for informal religious education (madrashahs) over formal schooling, which often operates in tension with secular protection efforts.
• Many young girls lack awareness of sexual safety or rights within marriage, often viewing domestic violence as an expected or normal part of their situation.

Failures in Oversight

• Camp-in-Charge (CiC) offices, tasked with oversight, lack effective monitoring teams to verify ages or investigate informal marriage contracts.
• Systematic impunity and fear of reprisal prevent community members from reporting violations, as those who hold power over daily survival can restrict access to aid if challenged.