Terming child marriage a threat to country's socio-economic progress, speakers at a programme yesterday urged people not to encourage marriage for children under the age of 18.

Children under 18 years of age are not physically and mentally ready for marriage and child birth, they said at daylong Child Protection Fair at Ershad School in the capital's Banani.

Advocacy for Social Change unit of Brae and Unicef jointly organised the programme with an aim to prevent child marriage, said a press release.

Mohammad Mojibur Rahman, additional deputy commissioner of Dhaka district, inaugurated the fair.

Speakers at the fair said girls who get married before the age of 18 are more likely to be exposed to violence and abuse. Child marriage also negatively impacts schooling and reduces children's opportunities in life.

Problems such as mother and child mortality, malnutrition, women repression and over population are directly linked to child marriage.

These problems can be solved easily if child marriage is stopped, they opined.

Neha Kapil, chief of communication at Unicef Bangladesh; KAM Morshed, director of Advocacy for Social Change, Technology and Partnership Strengthening Unit of Brae; and Salah Uddin Khan, officer-in-charge of Banani Police Station, spoke at the event among others.