Marriages in Ghana are not considered complete without the payment of the bride price.

The amount paid as bride price has gradually increased as the years go by from generation to generation among tribes, which is becoming challenging for most prospective husbands.

The cost of the bride price in recent times has contributed to most men believing that women are being sold to them, thus making some men maltreat their wives.

But for Rev. Jennifer Selly, who is a marriage counselor at Petra International Church, she was never sold to her husband for marriage.

According to her, the father did not give any marriage list to her husband’s family. She was sent as a gift to her husband, and this has made the man place value on her for close to three decades since the two have been married.

"When my husband’s family came to see my family, I remember the day they were coming for the list, my father told them, ‘I have no list for you. Just this statement made my husband today of 29 years cherish me and see me as everything to him because I was never sold to him. I was given to him to take care of," she told Asieduwaa Akumia on Prime Morning on Thursday.

Although her father did not provide a list, she said he only urged her husband’s family to follow the necessary procedures and do the right thing.

The two have been married happily ever since their marriage with little or no challenges.

The counselor indicated that most families have missed the purpose of the bride price, saying that they have merchandised it.

She admonished families to prioritise the lives of their daughters and reduce the cost of the bride price, in order not to make it seem as if the ladies are being sold.

She said the amount mentioned should represent a token and not a fee. "We shouldn’t make it a must," she said.

Rev. Jennifer Selly believes most marriages are struggling because of the amount of money spent before and during the marriage.