Publications

Early Marriage and Youth Reproductive Health: Fact Sheet on Youth Reproductive Health Policy

HPI-TO1
11/1/2009
English
Full Document (pdf 115.0 kb)

Early marriage or child marriage is defined as the marriage or union between two people in which one or both parties are younger than 18 years old (McIntyre, 2006; ICRW, 2005). The Universal Declaration of Human Rights recognizes the right to "free and full" consent to a marriage, acknowledging that consent cannot be "free and full" when one of the individuals involved is not sufficiently mature to make an informed decision about a life partner (UNICEF, 2005). Hence, early marriage is considered a human rights issue. Nonetheless, in many developing countries, particularly in poorer rural areas, girls are often betrothed or committed to an arranged marriage without their knowledge or consent. This brief examines the issue of early marriage and how it impacts the reproductive health of youth.

Document Type:	Policy Briefs
No. of Pages:	6
Country:	Global
Keywords:	FP/RH, Youth

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