High Bride Price: a Price Bachelors Must Pay in Nigeria

Marriage in Nigeria as in other parts of Africa beginstherefore been canceled owing to these sad
with what is known as introduction, this is very muchdevelopments leaving ladies who have attained
similar to what the Europeans call engagement butmarriagable age roaming around and most times
with the difference being that an introduction nevertaking to prostitution.
takes place without the presence of the families ofThese family haeds in some cases behave like the
the bride and groom to be. And this arrangementladies are going for sale. Look at Iboland where alot
usually involves a kind of ceremony.more is charges are placed on grooms simply
Bride price which ordinarily ought to be a token paidbecause such brides are educated up to university
by man to his In-laws as pre-traditional requirementlevel. what we now see in iboland, South-East of
for marriage in Africa now sends Bachelors beggingNigeria are old Ladies who are unmarried because
and panicking. Bride price also known in someguys are scared of marrying from that part of the
quarters as Bride wealth is a particular sum of moneycountry.
paid to the parents of the lady he intends to marryBecause what we have just discussed here
or to the Lady's family.separately has to do with what we call traditional
Please take note that in a typical African society suchmarriage and not the English kind of wedding which
as Nigeria, this is different from what is called dowry.may still conditionally required by the family, and
As dowry may be in form of items such as maleconsidered much more expensive in some cases
goat, tobacco, honey, tubers of yam, clothings,more than the traditional marriage itself which is more
umbrella, walking stick, box of clothes and host ofnecessary, we there call on the governemnt of
others given to the lady herself or her family.Nigeria concerned with culture to come up with laws
The examples of all these are found in yorubaland,that will give uniformity on amounts required as bride
south-west of Nigeria. However, the payment ofprice and dowry to be paid by men desiring to marry.
bride price and dowry in the contemporary NigerianSome people have expressed fears in some quarters
society has become scaring for a lot of guys desiringin Nigeria that a time may come when Ladies would
to marry. The reason is not far-fetched. Family headsgo begging men for marriage. A situation of recent
now request for more than what is necessry. Mostdevelopments in which Brides now contribute
of these family heads unreasonably issue out list offinancially to their own marriages is discouraging and
articles expensively impossible to gather, some ofunafrican in culture.we therefore appeal to the
which may be in form of cartons of beer, and otherAuthorities concerned in Nigeria to fashion out a way
forms of alcohol.certain old men would then live onof addressing this problem.
these beer. alot of traditional marriages have