Uzbekistan

3% of girls in Uzbekistan marry before the age of 18.

According to the most recent available DHS data from 2002, 1% of boys in Uzbekistan are married before the age of 18.

Child marriage is slightly more prevalent in the Central-Eastern region (7.4%) and Eastern region (4.7%).

It is difficult to accurately track child marriages in Uzbekistan as many take place through religious weddings – nikahs – and are only officially registered when a girl reaches the legal age for marriage.

Divorce rates from child marriage are high in Uzbekistan. This is often due to girls being unable to cope with their new family situations, or husbands forcibly throwing young wives out.

Unlike global trends, child marriage in Uzbekistan is less driven by poverty and more so by traditional attitudes and the need to secure a good “match” for girls.

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

In Uzbekistan, child marriage is exacerbated by:

● Gender norms: Some girls marry “earlier rather than later” in order to meet traditional expectations to become mothers and wives. This results in them abandoning school in order to prepare for married life.

● Power dynamics: Some parents consider it to be their duty to marry off their daughters at a young age, and work with prospective grooms’ parents to negotiate and agree marriage terms. Girls have limited decision-making power and some have reported feeling unequal to their husbands once married.

● Family honour: Some families marry off their daughters in order to preserve their innocence before they become “spoiled”. Loss of virginity before marriage is considered a disgrace to families.

● Religion: Despite the Spiritual Administration of Muslims’ 2009 internal regulation stating that nikahs (religious weddings) can only be carried out by official imams and after official state registration of a marriage, many couples continue asking informal community members to perform religious weddings. This leaves girls extremely vulnerable and with no legal or financial protection.

Uzbekistan 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. In this review, the government noted that in accordance with the recommendations of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, the legal minimum age of marriage has been raised to 18 years for both boys and girls. The government also noted that measures are being taken to address and eliminate violence against women, including trafficking and sexual and other forms of exploitation. Currently, there is a roadmap that is being implemented to address these issues.

Uzbekistan co-sponsored the 2020 and 2022 UN General Assembly resolutions on child, early and forced marriage.

Uzbekistan acceded to the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1994, which the Committee on the Rights of the Child has interpreted to recommend the establishment of a minimum age of marriage of 18, and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in 1995, which obligates states to ensure free and full consent to marriage.

During its 2022 review, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child acknowledged that in 2019 the government raised the legal minimum age of marriage to 18 years without exceptions for both men and women.

During its 2022 review, the CEDAW Committee recommended that the government address the school dropout rates among girls, including those due to child marriage and adolescent pregnancy, to ensure that adolescent mothers are able to return to school following childbirth.

During its 2015 review, the CEDAW Committee recommended that the government raise awareness on the importance of eliminating child marriage among traditional leaders, representatives of local mahalla committees and society at large.

During its 2018 Universal Periodic Review, Uzbekistan supported recommendations to take concrete measures to effectively combat gender-based violence, particularly early marriage.

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

Uzbekistan’s Women’s Committee cooperates with local mahalla committees to conduct awareness-raising campaigns on the harm caused by child marriage.

President Mirziyoyev has expressed his desire to transform women’s rights in Uzbekistan.

The 1998 Family Code stipulates that men have the right to contract a marriage from the age of 18 and women from the age of 17. In exceptional circumstances, the khokim (mayor) of a district or town has the right to reduce the marriageable age, but not by more than a year, under Article 15. The code does not provide a precise list of such exceptional circumstances, leaving this to the discretion of the authorities.

In May 2013, new provisions were introduced into the Administrative and Criminal Codes to increase punishment for officials, religious leaders and parents who allow child marriage to take place, including fines and imprisonment.