They also called for job-related education to ensure women's participation in national economy.

The daylong workshop titled 'Programme and policy options for early marriage in Bangladesh' was organised by The Population Council at the Brac Centre Inn in the city.

Presenting the keynote paper on 'Causes and consequences of early marriage in Bangladesh', Dr Sajeda Amin, senior associate of The Population Council, pointed out that more than 70 percent of women between ages 18 and 24 were married before the age of 18 in 2005.

" Social and economic insecurity plays a major role for early marriage in the country," she mentioned.

Chaired by Dr Hameeda Hossain of Ain O Salish Kendra, the programme was attended by representatives of different organisations including Brac, Care, Unicef, and World Bank.

After the plenary session, a group discussion on 'Role and strategy for advocacy' was held.

Speaking on the occasion, Afsan Chowdhury of Brac said, " We have to ensure participation, interaction and mobilisation (PIM) in the community advocacy.

The speakers said marriage costs and dowry, family motivation and mobilisation of communities to change marriage practices should be taken into consideration before adopting any policies to prevent early marriage.