“No person or society shall subject a child to any of the following practices:a. marrying any person when he or she is still under the age of 18; b. betrothing a child into marriage or a promise for marriage c. giving over a child to work either as a means of satisfying obligations on the part of the parent regardless of whether or not the work is harmful, hazardous or indecent; d. any unnecessary or uncultured practice that may inflict physical, psychosocial, or emotional pain to the child or otherwise violate or endanger her or his bodily integrity, life, dignity, education, welfare, or holistic development. (iii) Any form of female genital mutilation (Article 21.1(a)) a) The Children’s Law provides that “No person or society shall subject a child to any of the following practices:(a) Marrying any person when she or he is still under the age of 18; (b) Betrothing a child into marriage or a promise for marriage; (c) giving over a child to work either as a means of satisfying obligations on the part of the parent regardless of whether or not the work is harmful, hazardous or indecent; (d) any unnecessary or uncultured practice that may inflict physical, psychosocial, or emotional pain to the child or otherwise violate or endanger her or his bodily integrity, life, health, dignity, education, welfare, or holistic development.” Related amendments have been proposed to the Penal Code which would make any of the above activities a second degree felony. b) While female genital mutilation is not explicitly mentioned, the strong language above provides grounds for continued measures to address the issue. (iv) Any other form of harmful social and cultural practices (Article 21.I (b)) In 2010, the Ministry of Gender and Development was commissioned by the President‟s office to verify the operational schedule of Sande Schools (traditional initiation and education society for girls and women) in the counties that report disclosed a high prevalence of Sande Schools. The study‟s finding showed that, in more than half or observed cases, the Sande schools were held during regular school period and that a significant number of girls dropped out of school after SandeSchool(37% drop out) training. Based on the findings, the Ministry of Gender and Development recommended that in order to remove barriers for girls; education, licenses for Sande Schools operations be issued when the Sande Schools and given the girls an option to decide , while at the same time discouraging forced initiations by recommending the imposition of heavy fines. Following the launch of the above report, the Ministry of Gender and Development established a coordination mechanism with the Ministry of Internal Affairs to follow up on the implementation of the recommendations. The Government and partners have been engaged in activities aimed at increased public awareness and knowledge about the dangers and consequences of harmful traditional practices. Examples include the Joint UN and Government of Liberia Programme launched in 2011 on Adolescent Development, in Montserrado and Gbarpolu counties, targeting young adolescent girls to empower them with life skills, services, information and 20