The economic impacts of child marriage: Key findings

Objectives

The brief aims to quantify the human and economic costs of child marriage by estimating its impact on fertility, population growth, health, education, and women’s earnings in high-prevalence countries, and by calculating the economic benefits that could be realised if child marriage and related early childbearing were eliminated by 2030

Findings

The analysis shows that child marriage remains common. In the 25 most affected countries, more than one in three young women marry before age 18, and almost one in five give birth before 18. Ending child marriage would reduce fertility by about 11 percent across 15 countries. This would slow population growth and generate large welfare gains, estimated at US$22.1 billion in 2015 and rising to US$566 billion per year by 2030 from reduced population pressures alone.

Child marriage worsens health and nutrition. Children born to adolescent mothers face higher risks of dying before age five and of stunting. Millions of deaths and stunting cases could be prevented, translating into tens of billions of dollars in economic benefits. The practice also damages girls’ education. Between 10 and 30 percent of school dropout is linked to early marriage or pregnancy. Each year a girl marries before 18 lowers her chance of completing secondary school by four to six percentage points and reduces her earnings over her lifetime.

At the macro level, child marriage is associated with about a nine percent reduction in women’s earnings and a one percent loss in total labour-force earnings, or roughly US$26 billion in 15 countries. It also creates significant fiscal costs. Ending child marriage would generate billions of dollars in additional earnings each year and could save governments up to US$17 billion annually by 2030 in education spending.

Summary

The brief explains how child marriage harms girls and undermines economic development. Using data from over 100 countries, it shows that girls who marry early leave school sooner, have more and earlier births, and earn less as adults. These individual losses add up to large macroeconomic costs, including higher population growth, more child deaths and stunting, lower productivity, and increased pressure on public budgets. Ending child marriage and early childbearing would generate welfare gains valued in the hundreds of billions of dollars per year by 2030. The authors conclude that ending child marriage is not only a human rights imperative but also a smart economic investment.

Purpose

The brief aims to show the economic and human costs of child marriage and to demonstrate why ending the practice should be a priority for national development and poverty-reduction efforts. It translates the social harms of child marriage into clear economic terms to support stronger policy action.

Audience

The brief is intended for policymakers, government planners, donors, development agencies, and advocacy groups working on gender equality, education, health, and economic development. It also serves researchers and practitioners seeking evidence to guide programmes that address child marriage.