Tajikistan

9% of girls in Tajikistan marry before the age of 18.

Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Tajikistan saw a drop in living standards and an increase in poverty, which contributed to a decline of the average age of marriage, particularly for girls, in the past quarter century.

Child marriage is driven by gender inequality and the belief that women and girls are somehow inferior to men and boys.

In Tajikistan, child marriage is also driven by:

Poverty: Girls are commonly seen as economic “burdens” for the family and are married in forced, unregistered or polygamous marriages to relieve this perceived pressure. Younger girls are seen as easier to manage by prospective families.

Pre-marital sex: Child marriage is sometimes considered to “safeguard” against “immoral” behaviour when girls grow into dukhtar (young women) at 15. Some girls express anxiety and pressure to marry.

Level of education: Child marriage is driven by a lack of education, and also results in high numbers of girls dropping out of school. Tajikistan’s weak economy means there is little incentive to support girls in pursuing higher education before marriage.

Harmful practices: Some families choose religious schools for their daughters, which focus on domestic skills in preparation for marriage. Religious marriages for underage children are prevalent in rural parts of Tajikistan. Without a civil registration certificate, brides have limited legal rights.

Religion: Some parents still turn to religious leaders (mullahs) to hold wedding ceremonies for young girls. Nikah marriages are not recognised legally by the state, but according to Human Rights Watch occur with the tacit approval of local authorities. Nikah marriages are considered by many to have greater value than civil registration. They are more common in rural areas and do not provide girls with the rights and protections afforded by the law.

Gender inequality: Many men are migrating to Russia for work, which has led to an unbalanced gender ratio in Tajikistan. Parents sometimes feel pressured to marry daughters off when a suitable groom is identified.

Tajikistan has committed to ending child, early and forced marriage by 2030 in line with target 5.3 of the Sustainable Development Goals.

The government submitted a Voluntary National Review at the 2023 High Level Political Forum; however, there was no mention of child marriage.

Tajikistan co-sponsored the 2013 Human Rights Council resolution on child, early and forced marriage, and the 2020 and 2022 UN General Assembly resolutions on child, early and forced marriage.

In 1993, Tajikistan acceded to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which the Committee on the Rights of the Child has interpreted to recommend the establishment of a minimum age of marriage of 18, and acceded to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), which obligates states to ensure free and full consent to marriage.

In 2018, the CEDAW Committee expressed concerns about the high incidence of child marriages. The Committee recommended Tajikistan to take measures to prevent and eradicate child and forced marriages, strengthen awareness-raising campaigns and ensure that nikah (religious marriages) do not violate the minimum legal age of marriage. In 2013 the CEDAW Committee expressed concerns about patriarchal norms and customs which continue to contribute to child marriage and gender inequality in Tajikistan.

During its 2023 Universal Periodic Review, concerns were raised at the legal minimum age for marriage. Under the Family Code, the legal age of marriage is 18 years; however, under exceptional circumstances, a court may lower the age for marriage by one year. The Criminal Code criminalizes child marriage of a girl below the age of 18 years (article 168) and for entering a marriage with a girl below the age of 18 years (article 169). Between 2017 to 2020, law enforcement opened 36 criminal cases under article 168 and 27 criminal cases under article 169.

During Tajikistan’s 2016 Universal Periodic Review, concerns were raised about the illegal practice of underage religious marriages without civil marriage certificates. Tajikistan supported recommendations to end child marriage.

Tajikistan is a partner country of the Global Partnership for Education (GPE).

Tajikistan participated in a fifth round of human rights talks with Switzerland in February 2014. Emphasis was placed on the prevention of child marriage.

Following the President of Tajikistan’s oral order banning mullahs from conducting religious ceremonies before official marriage registrations have been submitted, local government officials, women leaders, religious leaders and activists have met to discuss how to more effectively prevent unregistered marriages.

Under Article 13 of the Family Code, the legal minimum age of marriage is 18 years old. However, adolescents can still marry at the age of 17 with the authorisation of a court in “exceptional circumstances”. Marriage of a minor is criminalised under Article 168 of the Criminal Code. Early marriage carries a criminal sentence of up to six months and forced marriage is punishable by up to five years’ imprisonment.