Tick tick boom: the rise of child marriage in Indonesia during the COVID-19 pandemic
Summary & Objectives
This study analyses the surge in child marriage in Indonesia during the COVID-19 pandemic, using national court data on marriage dispensation applications from 2019 to 2021. It aims to provide reliable, policy-relevant estimates of the scale and geographic distribution of child marriage during the pandemic, and to identify patterns that can inform prevention and response strategies. The paper responds to gaps in timely evidence needed by governments and stakeholders during crisis periods.
Findings
The study documents a sharp and unprecedented increase in child marriage during COVID-19, with dispensation applications rising from 24,865 cases in 2019 to over 62,000 cases in both 2020 and 2021. This represents an increase of up to 2.5 times compared to pre-pandemic levels. While the majority of applications were consistently concentrated in six provinces in Java, the fastest growth in new cases during the pandemic occurred in provinces outside Java. The findings suggest that pandemic-related economic shocks, school closures, and heightened poverty disproportionately increased marriage risks for girls, particularly in areas with large girl populations and higher poverty rates.
Recommendations
The study calls for urgent, targeted child marriage prevention efforts during and after crises, with particular attention to high-poverty regions and provinces experiencing rapid increases rather than only those with historically high prevalence. Strengthening social protection, safeguarding girls’ access to education during emergencies, and improving real-time monitoring of child marriage trends are critical. Policymakers should integrate child marriage prevention into disaster and pandemic preparedness frameworks to prevent similar reversals in progress during future shocks.
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