The SAFE project builds the social and health assets of vulnerable adolescent girls in urban Bangladesh, thereby improving their capabilities and well-being and reducing gender-based violence.
Child marriage and gender-based violence remain significant problems in Bangladesh. While it is illegal for girls under 18 to marry, more than 60% of girls in the country are married before they reach 18. Legal and policy reforms to address gender-based violence have had limited impact. Research shows that less than 2% of married women who have experienced physical violence seek any kind of remedy or service.
Young women living in urban slums face the greatest challenges. Their vulnerability to child marriage and violence is often compounded by poverty, insecure living arrangements, frequent squatter evictions, weak social networks, the absence of civic society institutions, the lack of public services, and poor coordination among services.