الأخبار

Every girl has the right to education. Yet, across the world, gender-based discrimination continues to deny millions of girls this right. A striking example of discriminatory practice against girls is child marriage, a practice that disproportionately affects girls, with 19 per cent of girls and 3 per cent of boys married before the age of 18.

7 March 2025

As recalled by the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and the Committee of the Rights of the Child (Recommendation N°31, General Comment N°18), “child marriage, also referred to as early marriage, is any marriage where at least one of the parties is under 18 years of age. (…) A child marriage is considered to be a form of forced marriage, given that one or both parties have not expressed full, free and informed consent” (para. 20).

For many girls, marriage often marks the abrupt end of their education. Once married, their likelihood of remaining in school drops dramatically. An alarming 87 per cent of adolescent girls (aged 15–17) who are married or in union are no longer in school. Child marriage and early pregnancy are closely linked, with 76 per cent of childbearing among girls under 18 occurring within marriage. This cycle of early marriage and motherhood reinforces dependency and limits opportunities, curbing girls’ potential and future prospects. 

Marriage laws worldwide

The interactive world map HerAtlas, through its global legal monitoring of the right to education, has been tracking marriage laws worldwide, including recent progress in raising the age of marriage and removing exceptions.

Under Article 16.2 of the CEDAW Convention, States must ensure that child marriage and betrothal hold no legal validity. Both the CEDAW Committee and the Committee on the Rights of the Child call for the elimination of harmful practices. Both Committees emphasize the need for a comprehensive, rights-based strategy that integrates supportive policies, social measures, and strong political commitment, ensuring real accountability at all levels to protect children’s rights and end child marriage (Recommendation N°31, General Comment N°18).

As of early 2025, 18 per cent of countries still allow marriage before the age of 18 for girls in their legislation, while only 26 per cent of countries have set the legal age at 18 without exceptions. The remaining 54 per cent permit marriage at 18 but allow exceptions, often requiring parental or judicial consent, sometimes with no absolute minimum age in place.

A closer analysis of HerAtlas data reveals that among the countries allowing exceptions, 65% have at least set an absolute minimum age under which marriage is strictly prohibited. However, in some cases, that minimum is alarmingly low—the most common absolute minimum age is 16 (75 per cent), but in some countries, it drops to just 13 years old.

Since 2019, governments around the world have been stepping up to explicitly ban child marriage without exceptions, marking a growing commitment to gender equality and education. Fourteen countries have amended their marriage laws to set the legal minimum at 18 years old without exceptions. 

Progress towards the end of child marriage

In just the past two years, notable reforms include:

• Belize (2024): Amended its Marriage Act to raise the legal age of marriage from 16 to 18 years old, without exception.
• Colombia (2025):Repealed a Civil Code provision that previously allowed minors over 14 to marry with parental or legal consent.
• Sierra Leone (2024): Adopted the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, eliminating all exceptions that previously allowed marriage before the age of 18.
• Bulgaria (2023): Repealed legal provisions that had allowed marriage exceptions for minors as young as 16.
• Zambia (2023): The legal age of marriage is set at 21 years old. Previously, exceptions allowed marriage from 16 years old with parental consent and below with judicial consent. However, with the adoption of the Marriage Amendment Act in 2023, these exceptions were restricted, establishing an absolute minimum age at 18 years old.

This positive tendency is continuing as several countries are following the same path and are currently in the process of amending their laws to progress towards the end of child marriage: 

• Bhutan (2024): A new Marriage (Amendment) Bill has been adopted by the National Assembly and is now being considered by the National Council, aiming to align the legal marriage age for boys and girls at 18.
• South Africa: the Marriage Bill of December 2023 has been debated over the last year, one of the proposed amendments is to raise the legal age of marriage at 18 years without exception.
• Morocco: Following a two-year consultation process, discussions on the Family Law include a proposal to set an absolute minimum age of marriage 17, where currently none exists. 

Marriage laws: a powerful tool in protecting girls' education

While many nations are moving in the right direction, some setbacks threaten progress. In a couple of countries, legislative discussions are underway—or decisions have already been made—to lower the legal age of marriage, putting even more girls at risk of being pulled out of school and denied their future.

The evidence is clear: strengthening marriage laws is a powerful tool in protecting girls' education. Governments must take decisive action to close loopholes, enforce 18 as the absolute minimum age for marriage, and ensure that every girl has the right to learn, grow, and thrive—free from the constraints of child marriage. 

→ HerAtlas

→ Protect her rights, strengthen your laws: Her Atlas: status report on girls’ and women’s right to education

→ Pregnancy and the right to education

→ Right to education handbook

URL: https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/how-marriage-laws-can-contribute-protecting-every-girls-right-education?hub=701