Global warming is increasing the risks of child marriages, teenage pregnancies, and violence against girls, warns Plan International. The charity’s findings were released on Monday, coinciding with climate discussions in Fiji and Tuvalu, where climate change profoundly impacts daily life.
The report, titled Change Her Forecast, the State of the World’s Girls 2026, is based on interviews with 5,000 girls and young women aged 15 to 24 in Bangladesh, Kenya, Peru, Senegal, and Zimbabwe. It reveals that one in ten girls experienced an unintended pregnancy following a climate-related event, with 33 per cent reporting an increase in unintended pregnancies within their communities.
“Ninety per cent of girls noted that climate-related events severely impacted their family’s survival, health, and stability,” the report states, which comes ahead of the International Day of the Girl Child on 11 October. Additionally, 28 per cent of those surveyed indicated a rise in violence against women after such events, rising to 60 per cent in Zimbabwe, a country significantly affected by rising temperatures.
Plan International highlights that prolonged drought is the most consistent risk factor linked to rising child marriage rates. As families lose their means of support over time, marrying off daughters becomes a survival strategy.
The charity urges nations to earmark funds for adolescent girls’ health, particularly in sexual and reproductive health services.
Meanwhile, UN climate chief Simon Stiell addressed health issues related to climate change, particularly extreme heat. He reported that over two-thirds of health professionals across five continents have seen complications from extreme heat in the past five years. He noted that climate-related heat during pregnancy is increasingly connected to premature birth, low birth weight, and maternal complications.
Stiell spoke at a UN pre-Cop gathering in Nadi, Fiji, which serves as a precursor to the larger UN climate summit, Cop31, scheduled for next month in Turkey. Fiji’s climate minister Lynda Tabuya urged developed nations to support a just transition to renewable energy and to assist those most vulnerable to climate change.
A UN report from August highlighted that developing countries require between $310 billion and $365 billion for climate adaptation but had access to only $26 billion in 2023. The report predicts that up to 1.2 billion people could be displaced by 2050, with Pacific island nations facing sea level rises at twice the global average. Tabuya called on nations to commit to climate finance.
