Child marriage in the Arab region

Understanding the issue

Child marriage remains a major concern across the Arab region. The region is now home to nearly 40 million child brides, including girls and women who are currently married and those who were married for the first time in childhood. According to UNICEF's 2019 global databases, 17% of women aged 20 to 24 in Egypt, 13% in Morocco, 28% in Iraq, 8% in Jordan, 6% in Lebanon, and 3% in Algeria were married for the first time before the age of 18. 

Some countries have set the minimum age of marriage at 18, but early marriage is still widespread, especially in rural areas, due to social and economic pressures, harmful cultural practices, legal loopholes and/or weak enforcement mechanisms. Some countries have raised the age of marriage to 18, but allow exceptions with judicial approval. Others, such as Lebanon, the age of majority varies according to different religious communities, reaching as low as 14 years in some, which leads to contradictions and high rates of child marriage in certain areas. 

Ending child and early marriage will take more than law reform; it requires societal and cultural shifts, as well as investment in implementation and enforcement mechanisms. 

How does child marriage affect girls and women in the Arab region?

When a girl is married as a child, the consequences shape her entire life:

• She is likely to leave school early, cutting off educational opportunities and limiting future employment options.
• She faces high risks to her health, including early and frequent pregnancies, complications during childbirth, and exposure to sexual and domestic violence.
• She enters into a legal relationship where she typically has fewer rights than an adult woman, including limited ability to initiate divorce or claim financial rights.

Over the life course, early marriage interacts with other discriminatory provisions in family law. A girl who marries early may:

• Become a mother while still a child, often bearing full responsibility for care and domestic work.
• Struggle to leave an abusive marriage because of financial dependence or fear of losing her children.
• If she divorces, face custody rules and financial provisions that leave her without assets or stable income.

In this way, child marriage often sets in motion a cycle of poverty, violence, and disempowerment.

International and regional human rights law 

International human rights standards are clear that child marriage is a harmful practice and a violation of girls’ rights. Treaty bodies such as the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women have repeatedly called on states to set 18 as the minimum age of marriage for all, without exception, and to ensure that this is enforced in practice. Key international and regional frameworks include:

• Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR): Recognises the right to marry only with free and full consent of both parties.
• Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC): Requires states to protect children from all forms of harmful practices, including child marriage.
• Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW): Obliges states to ensure that the betrothal and marriage of a child have no legal effect and ensure marriage occurs only with free and full consent. The Joint General Comment of the CEDAW Committee and the Child Rights Committee on Harmful Practices recommends a minimum legal marriage age of 18 for both girls and boys, with or without parental consent.
• Sustainable Development Goal 5.3: Commits all countries to eliminating child, early, and forced marriage by 2030.
• The Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol): Recognises 18 as the non-negotiable minimum age for marriage without exceptions.

Within the region, there are examples of progress, including countries that have taken steps to harmonise the minimum age across different religious communities or to close judicial loopholes. However, even when there is legal protection, implementation remains uneven. The Hurra Coalition works to document these gaps and to support advocacy for stronger, enforceable protections.

What Hurra members are doing to end child marriage 

The Hurra Coalition addresses child marriage as a fundamental violation of human rights that traps girls in cycles of poverty. Our collective efforts include: 

• Representation: we support young women from marginalised and displaced backgrounds - those most vulnerable to early marriage - to ensure their voices are heard within policy dialogues. 
• Resilience:  we provide community awareness sessions, legal awareness workshops and support networks that empower girls and women to resist early marriage through informed rights education.
• Reform: we advocate for repealing legal provisions that allow child marriage and removing "judicial exceptions" in national family codes, advocating for a clear, enforceable minimum age of 18 for all, regardless of religious sect.

By combining legislative pressure with community-level empowerment and youth leadership, we are working to ensure that every girl in the Arab region is free to pursue her education and future without the threat of forced/ early child marriage. 

In Lebanon

Hurra members were part of a coalition that submitted a unified draft law to parliament, prohibiting marriage under 18, applicable to all religious communities in Lebanon. 

In Morocco

Mains Libres has worked closely with national networks and coalitions advocating to end child marriage, including the Dunia coalition, which has a wide reach across the country. Together, they have implemented nationwide awareness-raising campaigns to mobilise communities in support of the cause. This grassroots work has been reinforced by sustained high-level advocacy: Mains Libres was invited to participate in the government's consultation on the proposed reform of the Moudawana, giving the Hurra coalition a direct voice in shaping the country's family law.

In Egypt

The Egyptian Foundation for Family Development (EFFD) is building a coalition parallel to Hurra, but focused on community-based organisations in marginalised areas. This network serves as a trusted focal point for disseminating awareness on ending child marriage, while also informing women and girls of their legal rights and strengthening community understanding of the legal frameworks and safeguards in place to protect them. In parallel, EFFD is engaging directly with policymakers and decision-makers in the state and parliament, holding consultative meetings and drafting proposed child marriage legislation for government adoption.

In Palestine

The Women's Studies Centre (WSC) has conducted awareness-raising campaigns in schools across several cities on the dangers of child marriage and the legal safeguards available to women and girls. These efforts are complemented by specialised sessions for parents and community members, ensuring a comprehensive, community-wide approach to awareness. WSC has also trained school teachers to sustain awareness-raising efforts and to recognise and report cases of child marriage.