This report explores the experiences of adolescent girls within two age brackets - 10-14 and 15-19 years - navigating the urban spaces of Beirut in order to access services and opportunities. The study was conducted with girls from both host (Lebanese) and refugee (including Syrian and Palestinian) communities, who were asked about their views on issues such as child marriage,
education, and girls’ roles in the household and community.
Older girls reported having less access to education, feel less safe in their movement around the city, experience and perceive greater harassment, are more at risk of child and early marriage, and feel the loss of privacy at home when compared to younger girls. Child marriage was identified as one of the key concerns for adolescent girls. overall
Examples of recommandations from the report include:
- Ensuring that adolescent mothers and married girls are included in adolescent-targeted initiatives and general programming. For example by providing childcare support and tailor interventions to their needs.
- Setting a minimum legal age of marriage at 18 for both men and women in Lebanon.
- Working with communities to show the harmful consequences of child marriage marriage on adolescent girls.
- Providing support and opportunities for married girls, and girls with children to return to school.
- Providing adolescent girl-friendly information and services, particularly around sexual and reproductive health and rights, recognising that girls often don't have access to such information as they tend to visit doctors with their mothers