Child Marriage: An Overview

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Approximately 15 million girls around the world are married before the age of 18 each year.1 This accounts for nearly one-third of all girls worldwide.2 Additionally, one in nine girls around the world are married before the age of 15.3 And in 2010, 67 million women ages 20-24 had been married before age 18.4 The countries with the highest rates of child marriage of Niger, with 75% of girls marrying before 18, Chad with 68%, Central African Republic with 68%, Bangladesh with 63%, and Guinea with 63%.5 Worldwide, over 700 million women were married as children,6 and 39,000 underage girls are married daily.7

There are numerous negative consequences to child marriage for young girls, including increased risk of abuse, increased risk of death or complications in childbirth, increased risk of depression or mental illness, increased risk of contracting HIV/Aids, and decreased likelihood of completihttp://goldenageofgaia.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Child-Bride-33.jpg 480w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />ng education. Complications with pregnancy and childbirth are the leading cause of death for girls ages 15 to 19 and contribute to 70,000 deaths each year.8,9 Additionally, the risk of infant death is 60% greater if the infant’s mother is under the age of 18 than if she is over the age of 19.10

Girls married before age 18 are more likely to experience domestic abuse or contract HIV/Aids from their older, more sexually experienced, husbands.11 When girls are married under the age of 18, they are statistically less likely to complete their education and are often separated from family and friends, leading to negative consequences for their emotional and mental health and overall well being.12 Child marriage is also statistically linked to an increase in domestic abuse and sexual violence. A survey in India indicated that girls married before the age of 18 were twice as likely to be beaten or abused by their husbands than girls who married at an older age; they also were three times as likely to be forced to have sex against their will.13 A similar survey in Peru revealed that women who married under the age of 18 were more likely to experience domestic and sexual violence.14

While rates of child marriage are declining among families with higher incomes, child marriage remains a strong indicator of poverty in many countries.15 Among many impoverished families young girls are married off to reduce the family’s economic burden, or to gain a traditional dowry or bride price.16Additionally, families who live in areas with a high risk of physical or sexual violence desire to marry of their daughters at a young age to protect them from sexual assault or pregnancy out of wedlock.17 Furthermore, in some countries child marriage is so ingrained in the cultural mindset that it continues to be practiced for no reason other than tradition.18

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