Child marriage is a practice in decline, according to the latest data 25 million child marriages have been prevented.Despite this major achievement, there's still ways to go to reach UNICEF's Sustainable Development Growth to fully eliminate this practice by 2030.
Factors
Factors that contribute to the prolongation of this practice are; poverty, the misconception that marriage provides protection, social norms, and customary or religious laws that promote the practice.
Regardless of what the reasons are, child marriage is a breach of the child's human rights. This breach also extends to 'cohabitation'- unmarried couples living together.
Proportionally, young girls are more prone to be in these marriages than boys. Regardless, child marriage is a breach of human rights, no matter the gender.
Impacts on Girls
The impact of girls being married young affect their physical and mental well-being. The onset of early pregnancies compromises their development, and isolates the girls from any real social interaction. Furthermore, this isolation in an early marriage also increases the chances of domestic abuse.
The highest number of child marriages are in sub-Saharan Africa, where 4 in 10 girls under the age of 18
Impact on Boys
Although boys won't be physically affected by child marriage, their struggles differ from girls in the sense that they are forced to take on the role of a provider at a young age. Early fatherhood means more economic pressure to make ends meet.
Around 115 million boys marry before they reach the age of 18.
Overall Impact
Both boys and girls are tremendously impacted by these marriages, the need to "grow up" at a severely young age not only disrupts the child's personal development, it also limits their educational and vocational opportunities.
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