Giving Compass' Take:

• Devex reports on some good news: child marriage across the world is decreasing. But this article cautions that the fight isn't over, lest positive numbers depress funding.

• It's important to know the work ahead in this and other gender equity efforts, taking the numbers as evidence of impact from donors in the sector, rather than a sign that the work is done.

• Here's how education is a form of protection against child marriage.

Last month, UNICEF released new data showing that the prevalence of child marriage is globally decreasing. Out of all regions, South Asia has witnessed the largest decline. In the past decade, the percentage of girls marrying before their 18th birthday in the region has dropped from nearly 50 percent to 30 percent.

While this decline of more than one-third has drawn praise, it also doesn’t fully represent the realties on the ground, according to groups that focus on child marriage. And some fear the rare positive news could lead to a drop in funding — and a backsliding in progress.

“It’s crucial that donors, governments, nongovernment organizations, and others don’t walk away from the news about the new data with the idea that their work is finished. If we don’t accelerate progress, 150 million girls will marry between now and 2030,” said Lakshmi Sundaram, executive director of Girls Not Brides, a United Kingdom-based umbrella organization of 900 local NGOs combating child marriage.

“What is clear from these new figures is that change is possible, and so we need to urge donors and others to step up their funding efforts rather than pull back,” Sundaram continued. Several NGOs in India and Nepal echoed Sundaram’s concern that a premature drop of funding might put their current operations at risk.

Read the full article about the progress in the child marriage fight by Martin Bader at Devex International Development.