There have been worries in many families in Igbo land when male children fail to get married when they are due. Often times, men as old as 40 remain unmarried, not because they do not want to be married, but because they lack the resources to do so.

Findings show that one of the reasons is high bride price. In many Igbo communities, it is believed that marriage is meant for mature men, not boys. Therefore, only real men who are ready and well equipped financially can pay the exorbitant bride price and provide all the items in the list brought by the family of the bride, which includes goat, bags of rice, tubers of yam, clothes and cash for various categories of people. Sometimes it is even made a condition that the bride must train one of her siblings up to the university level.

Again, Igbo men keep postponing marriage because, apart from the high bride price, which could be as high as N200,000, the cost of traditional marriage is also high as it requires the throwing of flamboyant ceremonies as may be required by the family of the bride. For such traditional ceremonies, the groom provides money for dresses to be worn by the bride and the bridal train, the bride's mother and her friends and provides money for the elaboratecooking that would be done. Late marriage inevitably became more pronounced when unemployment hit the rooftop.
For one to meet marriage requirements, he has to have a steady income. With graduates staying at home without jobs several years after graduation and with those who did not attain university education being apprentices for about eight years before they are settled by their masters to begin their own business, marriage becomes the least priority for men.
Besides, many Igbo girls prefer husbands who are already rich.
Failure to get such husbands often attracts scorn from female colleagues and so, they would rather wait until rich men come to ask for their hands in marriage.
Anambra : Marriage for the 'highest bidders' There was this young man, Chike, who met a girl from Anambra State during their National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, and decided to get married soon after their service year. The man, in his late 20s, was lucky to have a ready- made job in the same Anambra because he was granted study leave and, therefore, had the opportunity of returning to his ministry after NYSC.
Chike's thinking was that if he got married, he would start early to raise a family of his own. But when he met the family of his would-be wife, he was shocked at the list of items he was asked to bring. Because he did not have that kind of money, Chike went home dejected and, for the next 10 years, was unmarried. By the time he eventually got married, Nneka, his NYSC friend who he would have got married to, already had four children as she got married to a trader whose educational qualification was primary six, but was rich. Though Nneka initially objected to her getting married to the trader, she had to succumb when rich, educated men were not forthcoming. That is the plight of young Igbo men and their women.
Read More: PART 2 http://www.9casandra.com/category/170/igbo-parents-should-reduce-the-pride-price-of-their-daughters-part-2

Bro thats why they hustle their life away.
I grow up in hustling now am enjoying grace.
Bro being an igbo is not easy.

Stop crying mate

If you can't afford it, move on

They better listen as it will become a disaster someday

I was thinking, they call it BRIDE PRICE? , Which one is PRIDE PRICE . what do i know.

Imagine the brother to my wife-to be, called me to know why? They did not get any respond from me after 6months i have received the so called (marriage poverty aliviation list) from them. I told him your sister is too expensive for me to marry.

If you can't manage, seek someone on your level. Also there are some wealthy men who will pay for their daughters' wedding if you are a professional man. You just have to be well liked by the family and remain quiet. But remember when trouble hits, the family will remind you of your poverty.