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AN EVALUATION OF THE CONSEQUENCES AND LEGAL PARADIGM OF CHILD MARRIAGE 

IN NIGERIA* 

Abstract 

Generally, it is apt to state that marriage is said to be between two consenting adults. However, in Nigeria, it has 

been observed that the issues of child marriage is becoming on the increase. This is concerning the fact that study 

has revealed that in Nigeria, particularly northern Nigeria has some of the highest rates of early marriage in the 

world. Furthermore, it suffices to state that there are a lot of adverse consequences that goes with child marriage. 

Although, there are international and domestic laws that tend to stipulate the minimum age of marriage. However, 

despite the said law, there is still increase of child marriage in Nigeria. It is in this regard, that this study employs 

the use of doctrinal study in examining the consequences of child marriage in Nigeria. Furthermore, the study 

will also examine the various international and domestic laws as it relates to child marriage in Nigeria in 

ascertaining to what extent they regulate child marriage. The study therefore concludes and recommends that, 

though there are laws that condemned child marriage in Nigeria, however, there is still an increase rate of child 

marriage in Nigeria. In this regard, the government, community and NGO should ensure an appropriate 

compliance with the laws that condemned child marriage.  

 

Keywords: Legal, Child, Marriage, Nigeria 

 

1. Introduction 

Child marriage is a fundamental violation of human rights which begun as a practice throughout history for variety 

of reasons including poverty, customs, insecurity as well as political and financial reasons1. Child Marriage refers 

to two separate meanings practiced in some societies’ affects both boys and girls, but it is more common among 

girls2. First is the most common practice which is that of a young girl given out in marriage to a man3. The second 

s child betrothal where both children are betrothed with their parents’ consent for a future marriage, the individuals 

do not meet till the wedding day which happens when they are considered to be of marriageable age4. In this 

regard, it suffices to state that in Nigeria, child marriage is taken as a trivial issue. Children are abused daily and 

it is being swept under the rug5. Some of the reasons why Child rights are taken lightly are due to poverty, 

1gnorance, inhumane culture and so on6. Also, the fact that the female child is seen almost as, dispensable property 

is one of the main reasons why child marriage is predominant in Nigeria7. 

 

Given the above, it is apt to state that Nigeria, particularly northern Nigeria, has some of the highest rates of early 

marriage in the world8. The Child Rights Act of 2003 sets the national legal minimum age of marriage at 18. To 

 
*By Chi-Johnny OKONGWU, LLB (Hons) LL.M, BL, MBA, PhD, FIPM, FCIDS, CFIAR, CFIAR, FECRM, FIPDM, 

MISMN, AMNIM, FCIPFM, Associate Professor, Department of Jurisprudence and International Law, Associate Dean 

Faculty of Law and Former Dean, Students Affairs, Chukuwemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Igbariam Campus. Email: 

lawleviokongwu@gmail.com  Tel: +2348034850007; and 

*Simon Ejokema IMOISI, LLB, LLM, PhD, BL, Senior Lecturer, Department of Public and International Law, Faculty of 

Law , Edo State University Uzairue, Nigeria.  Email: Imoisi.simon@edouniversity.edu.ng.  Tel.: 08056460834. 
1 Adebowale SA, Fagbamigbe FA, Okareh TO, Lawal GO. Survival analysis of timing of first marriage among women of 

reproductive age in Nigeria: regional differences. Afr J Reprod Health. 16 no. 4, (2012): 95–107; Adedokun O, Adeyemi O, 

Dauda C. ‘Child marriage and maternal health risks among young mothers in Gombi, Adamawa state, Nigeria: implications 

for mortality, entitlements and freedoms’ Afrcan Heal Science 16 no. (2016): 986–99. https://doi.org/10.4314/ahs.v16i4.15 
2 Alayande A, Bello-Garko B, Abubakar Z, Kagara H, Nuhu IA. ‘Medical perspective of childhood marriage in Nigeria: body 

of evidence from 2013 Nigeria demographic and health survey’ Curr Womens Health Rev. 15 no. 3, (2019): 188–95 

. https://doi.org/10.2174/1573404814666181026095357; Allen AA, Adekola PO. Health Implication of Child Marriage in 

North-East Nigeria. Analele Universitatii Din Oradea, Seria Geografie Year XXVII. 2017;7(1):54–61. 
3 Annabel S. E., Mairo B. ‘The Experience of Married Adolescent Girls in Northern Nigeria, Population Council, Nigeria, 

Inc.’ www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/NigeriaMarriedAdol accessed, 12th January 2022 
4 debowale S. A. Dynamics of child marriage and marital timing in Nigeria: a retrogression or progression? Health Care 

Women Int. 39 no. 9, (2018): 975–93. https://doi.org/10.1080/07399332.2018.1490742. 
5 Delprato M, Akyeampong K. ‘The effect of early marriage timing on Women’s and Children’s health in sub-Saharan Africa 

and Southwest Asia’ Ann Glob Health. 83 no (2017): 557–67  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aogh.2017.10.005; Fayokun,  K.O.  

‘Legality  of  child  marriage  in  Nigeria  and  Inhibitions  Against Realisation of Education Rights’ US-China Education 

Review B 5 no. 7 (2015): 460-4700 
6 Menski, W. Hindu Law: Beyond Tradition and Modernity (Delhi: Oxford UP, 2003) p. 177; Nwogugu E.I, Family Law in 

Nigeria, 3rd edition (Lagos: HEBN Publishers Plc, 2014), 38 
7 Nwokolo, C. ‘Counseling Against Early Marriage of the Girl-Child in Anambra State’ Edo Journal of Counseling, 3 no. 1 

(2020): 550-570; Olukemi A. A, Folakemi O. C. ‘Culture of silence and wave of sexual violence in Nigeria’, AASCIT Journal 

of Education. 1 no. 3 (2015): 31–37 
8 Aidonojie P. A. & Egielewa P., (2020). Criminality and the Media: Perception and Legality of the Amotekun Security Agency 

in Nigeria. International Journal of Comparative Law, and Legal Philosophy, Vol. 1 (3), p. 47-72. 

mailto:lawleviokongwu@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.4314/ahs.v16i4.15
https://doi.org/10.2174/1573404814666181026095357
http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/NigeriaMarriedAdol
https://doi.org/10.1080/07399332.2018.1490742
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aogh.2017.10.005


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be effective, however, state assemblies must take necessary measures to implement the Act and to date, only 23 

of Nigeria's 36 states have taken concrete steps to execute the minimum age of marriage9. It suffices to state that, 

data shows a 9 per cent decline in the prevalence of child marriage since 2003, action is needed to prevent 

thousands of girls from being married in the coming years. To further complicate matters. Nigeria has three 

different legal systems operating simultaneously: sharia, state and federal governments have control only over 

marriages that take place within the civil system10. However, despite that there is global condemnation of child 

marriage; it suffices to state that there is still incidence of child marriage in Nigeria. It is concerning the above 

that this study tends to embark on an evaluation concerning the consequences and relevant legal framework 

concerning child marriage in Nigeria.  

 

2. Consequences of Child Marriage 

• Child marriage is a fundamental violation of human rights. Many girls (and a smaller number of boys) 

are married without their free and full consent. By international conventions. 18 years has been 

established as the legal age of consent to marriage.11 If the timing of marriage does not change, over 100 

million girls will he married children in the next ten years.12 

• Child marriage is closely associated with no or low levels of schooling for girls. In West and Central 

Africa. girls with three or fewer years of schooling are five times more likely than girls with eight or 

more years of schooling to marry before age 18.13 Poverty leads many families to withdraw their 

daughters from school and arrange marriage Tor them at a young age. These girls are denied the proven 

benefits of education, which include improved health lower fertility and increased economic 

productivity.14 

• Child marriage in many instances marks an abrupt transition into sexual relations with an older husband. 

The younger a bride is, the more likely it is that she enters marriage as a virgin and the larger the age 

difference between her and her spouse. Parents frequently arrange marriages for their daughters without 

their inputs or consent. In some settings, it appears that the younger a girl is when she get married, the 

less say she has in the choice of her husband.15 

• First births carry special risks for both mother and child. The vast majority of births to adolescent girls 

are first births that occur within marriage.16 The foremost risk first births carry is prolonged or obstructed 

labour, which can result in obstetric fistulas in settings where access to care is limited. First births also 

have elevated risks of pre-eclampsia, malaria, and infant mortality.17 Girls who give birth during 

adolescence require special attention because they are less mature and are simultaneously coping with 

their own and their baby's physiological, emotional, and economic needs. Globally, adolescent mothers 

tend to be poorer, less educated, and less adequately nourished than older mothers: they also face greater 

social disadvantage.18 

 
9 Paul P, Chouhan P. Association between child marriage and utilization of maternal health care services in India: Evidence 

from a nationally representative cross-sectional survey. Midwifery, 2019:75; Toyo N. ‘Revisiting Equality as a Right: The 

Minimum Age of Marriage Clause in the Nigerian Child Rights Act  2003’ Third World Quarterly 27 no. 7 (2006) 1299-1312. 
10 Center for Reproductive Law and Policy (CRLP), ‘Women of the World: Laws and Policies Affecting Their Reproductive 

Lives (Anglophone Africa)’. New York, 2012: CRLP 
11 See, among others, The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948); The Convention on the Elimination of Forms of 

Discrimination Against Women (1979); The Convention on the Rights of the Child(1989), and African Charter on the Rights 

and Welfare of the Child(1990) 
12 Population Council Analysis of United Nations country data on marriage,2002 
13 Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data on 20-24-year-olds. Analyses conducted in 2003 by Barbara Mensch for the 

National Academy of Sciences; Mensch S.B et al. ‘Trends in the Timing of First Marriage among Men and Women in the 

Developing World’ paper presented at the 68th Annual Meeting of the population Association of America, Minneapolis, 1-3 

May 2003 
14 Population Council. 1995. ‘Accelerating Girls' Education: A Priority for Governments,’ Fact Sheet compiled for the Fourth 

World Conference on Women. Beijing, 4-15 September: Herz. B, and Sperling B.G. What works in Girls’ Education: Evidence 

and Policies from the Developing World (New York: Council on Foreign relations, 2004) 
15 Sajeda Amin and Luciana Suran, personal communication, 2004.Based on data from Amin, Sajeda, Simeen Mahmud, and 

Lopita Huq. 2002. ‘Baseline survey report on rural adolescents in Bangladesh.’ Dhaka: Ministry of Women's Affairs, 

Government of Bangladesh. See also El-Zanaty, Fatma, Enas M. Hussein, Gihan A. Shawky, et al. 1996. Egypt Demographic 

and Health Survey 1995. Calverton, MD: National Population Council (Egypt) and Macro International, Inc. 
16 78 per cent of births that occur before age 18 are first births, and 90 per cent of first births that occur before age 18 occur 

within marriage. DHS data analyzed by Monica Grant, Policy Research Division, Population Council. (DHS surveys cover 60 

per cent of developing-country populations.) 
17 Kiely. M, (ed.) Reproductive and Perinatal Epidemiology (Florida: CRC Press, 1991) p. 40; Kline. J, et al. Conception to 

Birth: Epidemiology of Prenatal Development (New York: Oxford University Press, 1989), 79-81 
18Miller. S and Lester. F, ‘Married Young First-Time Mothers: Meeting their Special Needs,’ paper prepared for the 

WHO/UNFPA/Population Council Technical Consultation on Married Adolescents, WHO, Geneva, 9-12 December 2003 



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• Married girls have distinct and, in some settings, substantial risks of acquiring HIV, Child brides typically 

experience high rates of unprotected sex; have significantly older (and thus more sexually experienced) 

spouses, and are largely unable to negotiate safer sex.19 In settings with generalized HIVAIDS epidemics, 

these factors may leave married girls vulnerable to infection. 

 

3. International Laws concerning Child Marriage 

Child marriage is a Violation of human rights and is prohibited by several international conventions and other 

instruments. Nigeria has ratified most of the international laws relating to child marriage. A few of them are listed 

as follows: 

 

Convention on Consent to Marriage, Minimum Age for Marriage a Registration of Marriages 1964 

This convention20 is aimed at ensuring that no marriage shall be legally entered into without the full and free 

consent or bon parties, such consent to be expressed by them in person as prescribed by law. Article 2 of the 

convention21 provides that states parties to the present convention shall specify a minimum age for marriage not 

less than 15 years’ according to the nonbinding recommendation accompanying this Convention. No marriage 

shall be legally entered into by any person under this age, except where a competent authority has granted a 

dispensation as to age, for serious reasons in the interests of the intending spouses. Article 322 provides that all 

marriages shall be registered by the competent authority. In this regard, it suffices to state that at the international 

level, the idea of child marriage aptly condemned. Although, it seems the convention stipulate age from 15 and 

above as an age a persons could be said to be good enough for marriage, but the consent of the said person must 

be sort for such marriage to be valid.    

 

Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989 

The Convention on the Rights of a Child23 was adopted and opened for signature on the 20th November 1989. It 

is the first legally binding international instrument that deals with human rights issues on children. It has been 

ratified by all countries except the United States and Somalia. Nigeria ratified this law in March 1991 which 

provides for access to education and stipulates that every child has the right to free, compulsory, and universal 

basic education (primary and junior secondary school) and it shall be the duty of the government in Nigeria to 

provide such education with the assistance of parents and guardians of children. Several provision of the CRC 

hold relevance to Child marriage; however, some of them are analysed as follows; Article 3 of the convention24 

provides that in all actions concerning children the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration. 

Article 19 of the convention25 further stipulate that the right to protection from all forms of physical or mental 

violence, injury or abuse, maltreatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse, while in the care of parents, 

guardian, or any other person. Also, article 24 of the convention26 provides for the right to health, and to access 

to health services, and to be protected from harmful traditional practices. This provision is perhaps the most 

relevant clause against child marriage as this practice is part of the Hausa-Fulani tradition and since this act is 

harmful to the health of children, CRC can recommend the abolition of traditional practices such as child marriage. 

However, most relevant provision of the conventions of the right of a child is Article 28 and 2927 provides for the 

right to education on the basis of equal opportunity. Furthermore, it suffices to opined that article 34 and 36 of the 

convention28 further stipulate for the right to protection from all forms of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse 

and the right to protection from all forms of exploitation prejudicial to any aspect of the child’s welfare. 

 

African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child 1990 

The African Children's Charter29 was signed by Nigeria on 13 July 1999 and ratified on 23 July 2001. Unlike 

CRC, the African Children's Charter is a more comprehensive instrument as it deals with a multitude of rights of 

the child, including marriage. Also, the African Children's Charter sets the age of childhood below 18 years30, 

without al1owing states to prescribe otherwise. Therefore, while the practice of child marriage in Northern Nigeria 

 
19 S. Clark, ‘Early Marriage and HIV Risks in Sub-Saharan Africa,’ Studies in Family Planning Vol. 35 No.3, PP. 149-160. 
20 Convention on Consent to Marriage, Minimum Age for Marriage a Registration of Marriages, 1964 
21 Ibid 
22 Ibid 
23 Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989 
24 Ibid 
25 Ibid 
26 Ibid 
27 Ibid 
28 Ibid 
29 The African Children's Charter was signed by Nigeria on 13 July 1999 and ratified on 23 July 2001 
30 Ibid 



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may not contravene Article 1 of CRC, it does contravene Article 1 of the African Children’s Charter31. In contrast 

to CRC, the prohibition of child marriage is included in the African Children's Charter under Article 21(2)32, 

which states: ‘Child marriage and the betrothal of girls and boys shall be prohibited and effective action, including 

legislation, shall be taken to specify the minimum age of marriage be 18 years and make registration of all 

marriages in an official registry compulsory’. Similar to the African Children s Charter, the Protocol to the African 

Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (African Women's Protocol),33 which  

defines women as including girls, stipulates 18 years34 as the minimum age of marriage for women. Furthermore, 

some articles under the African Children's Charter specifically deal with child marriage. These include, but are 

not limited to, the protection of children from economic exploitation and sexual abuse. Much like Article 24(3) 

of CRC, the African Children’s Charter also contains a provision that urges states to protect children against 

harmful social and cultural practices.35 Under Article 21 of the African Children's Charter36, state parties are urged 

to: ‘…take all appropriate measures to eliminate harmful social and cultural practices affecting the welfare, 

dignity, normal growth and development of the child and in particular’ (a) those customs and practices prejudicial 

to the health or life of the child, and (b) those customs and practices discriminatory to the child on the grounds of 

sex or other status. 

 

This article stamps out the major causes of child marriage, namely, customs and traditional practices. In the 

Nigerian context, the Hausa- Fulani undoubtedly violates Article 21 of the African Children's Charter37. Despite 

being a signatory to both the African Children’s Charter and CRC, Nigeria saw the need to domesticate both 

instruments and to promote the protection of children in Nigeria. This desire to protect and promote the rights of 

the Nigerian child began with a Bill of Child Rights in 1993. Concerning the above, it suffices to also state that 

apart from the above international legal framework concerning issues of child marriage in Nigeria, are other 

international laws such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights38. Though, this convention does not direct 

provide for issues as it relate to child marriage, however, it provide for the welfare and right of an individual, 

which also include a child. In this regard, article 16(1) of declaration39 provides that men and women of full age, 

without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion have the right to marry and to found a family. They are 

entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution. Subsection (2) provides that marriage 

shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses. 

 

4. Domestic Laws concerning Child Marriage in Nigeria 

It suffices to state that why Nigeria is one of the countries who have frown at child marriage by ratifying more 

international laws that provide for the welfare of a child and condemned child marriage. However, there some 

laws that also condemned issues as it relate to child marriage in Nigeria, some of these laws are address as follows; 

 

Nigeria Constitution 

There is no provision providing the age of marriage under the Constitution but Section 29(4)40 impliedly has been 

confused to be applied to child marriages. This section has to do with renouncing of citizenship. Section 29(4) (a) 

and (b) of the Constitution41 provides that full age means the age of eighteen years and above. However, it went 

further to state that any woman who is married shall be deemed to be of full age. This provision has the effect of 

ratifying or approving an otherwise illegal marriage where a girl between ten and seventeen years is married either 

forcefully or with her consent. This lacuna in the Constitution has led to certain implications. 

 

Marriage Act 

The Marriage Act does not define or lay down any mandatory age of marriage or the lowest limit of the age of 

marriage. This vacuum is not only important but also fundamental which requires immediate remedial action. 

Before 1970, when the Matrimonial Causes Act became effective in Nigeria, one school of thought held the view 

that the lacunae in the Marriage Act could be filled by applying the law and practice for the time being in force in 

England.42 Whatever may be the validity of this point of view, the possibility of its application has been lost since 

 
31 Ibid 
32 Ibid 
33 Article 6 African Women’s Protocol  
34 Article 6(1) African Children's Charter on Rights and Welfare of Children 
35 Article 21 African Children's Charter on Rights and Welfare of Children 
36 Ibid 
37 Ibid 
38 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948 
39 Ibid 
40 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) 
41 Ibid 
42 Nwogugu E.I, Family Law in Nigeria 3t Edition (Lagos: HEBN Publishers, 2014) 



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1970 Matrimonial Causes Act came into force banning the application of English Law43. The other point of view 

is to the effect that common law rule will apply to the age of marriage.44 Both by cannon law and at common law, 

a valid marriage could be contracted only if both parties had reached the legal age of puberty, which is fixed at 

fourteen for boys and twelve for girls.45 If either party was under this age when the marriage was contracted, it 

could be avoided by either party when that party reached the age of puberty but if the marriage is ratified (as it 

could impliedly be by continued cohabitation) it became irrevocably binding.46 It is perhaps surprising that this 

remained the law until well into the present century. In the words of Pearce J ‘according to modem thought, it is 

considered socially and morally wrong that persons of an age at which we now believe them to be immature and 

provide for their education should have the stresses responsibilities and sexual freedom of marriage and the 

physical strain of childbirth’. However, it must be noted that section 18 of the Marriage Act provides that the 

mature age a person is said to be mature without seeking parental consent is 21 years. Though the Marriage Act 

did not specifically provide for the actual marriageable age, however, section 48 of the Marriage Act provide that, 

it is an offense for any person to marry a minor without a written consent obtained from minor’s (under the age 

of twenty-one) parents and it is an offence to assist or procure any other person to marry such minor, such person 

shall be liable to imprisonment for two years. From the wordings of section 48 of the act, it can be inferred that 

the specific age (without seeking consent) for marriage under the Act is 21 years, though the minimum age for 

marriage was not specified under the Act. Section 18 of the Marriage Act is against the intendment of section 21 

of the Child Right Act, which stipulatess that the minimum age for marriage is 18 years. Section 29(4) (a) and (b) 

1999 Constitution which provide thus: ‘For the purposes of subsection (1) of this section, (a) ‘full age’ means the 

age of eighteen years and above; (b) any woman who is married shall be deemed to be of full age.     

 

From the above provision of the Constitution, it is emphatically clear that the actual marriageable age without 

seeking parental or guidance consent is 18. This view has been argued by Nwogugu on page 42 of his text when 

he stated thus; 

The requirement of parental consent to marriage became part of our law when the age of 

majority was regarded as twenty-one years. This has changed not only Nigeria but in other parts 

of the world. The Provisions may therefore be considered anachronistic in the light of modern 

Nigeria law... Moreover, the prescribed minimum age of marriage in Nigeria is now eighteen. 

 

Child’s Rights Act 

The concept of child's right has been an offshoot of human rights which connotes the rights and entitlements 

claimed for children worldwide. Child’s rights are human rights which are claimed specifically for the protection 

of children and care afforded to minors. The United Nations Convention on the rights of the child is the most 

widely ratified convention in history. The convention sets out the rights of children aged zero to eighteen years 

and is government's responsibility to ensure those rights are enforced. The rights of a child are based on what a 

child needs to survive, grow, participate and meet their potential. These apply equally to every child, regardless 

of ethnicity, gender or religion. The Child’s Rights Act47 was enacted in Nigeria because of the United Nations 

Convention on the Rights of the Child which was adopted on 24th November 1989. Because is a United Nations 

Convention, which means an agreement between the nations or the world, it does not become binding on Nigerians 

until it has been enacted by the National Assembly. This was done by the National Assembly in 2003.48 The 

Child’s Rights Act prohibits both the marriage of those considered to be children and the betrothal of children. 

With child marriages, Part III Section 21 of the Child Right Act49 provides that ‘No person under the age of 18 

years is capable of contracting a valid marriage, and accordingly a marriage so contracted is null and void and of 

no effect whatsoever’. 

 

Also, Part l Section 22(2) of the Child’s Right Act50, further prohibits the betrothal of children, maintains that; 

‘no parent guardian or any other person shall betroth a child to any person. A contravention of either Section 21 

or Section 2251 amounts to a fine of 500,000 Naira or imprisonment for a term of five years or to both a fine and 

 
43 Ikubanni O. O., and Aidonojie P. A. ‘The Legality of Virtual Marriage in Nigeria given the Covid-19 Pandemic Social 

Distancing: An X-ray of the Matrimonial Causes Act’, Madonna University, Nigeria Faculty of Law, Law Journal, 6 no. 1 

(2021): 123-129 
44 Adesanya A.S, Law of Matrimonial Causes (Ibadan: University Press, 1973),7 
45 Harrod v. Harrod (1854) 1 K& J 469; (1854) ER 344 
46 Rogers E.M, Family Law (London: Blackstone Press Ltd, 1998) 
47 Child Right Act 2003 
48 Section 12 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) 
49 Child Right Act 
50 Ibid 
51 Ibid 



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imprisonment.52 Although the Child Rights Act imposes sanctions on child marriages and betrothal, the use of the 

conjunction or is worrisome because there 1s an indication that those who partake in child marriages and, in turn, 

contravene the Child Rights Act53, may escape jail by only paying the stipulated fine of 500.000 Naira. However, 

the option to pay a fine for a heinous act such as child marriage appears to be the least of the CRA's problems. 

The tenure of the Act is not confined to marriage under the Act or Christian marriage but rather it is intended to 

cover both customary and Islamic law marriages. 

 

A major problem with the Child’s Rights Act is acceptance. This Act is expected to be adopted or domesticated 

by all the 36 states of the Federation. However, only 22 states of the Federation have adopted or domesticated the 

Act54. These states are in the Southern parts of Nigeria. The Northern states have refused to adopt it because of 

the contradictions in the Act and the attempt of the Act to modify certain religious beliefs in Nigeria. What this 

means that children may have no rights in states which are vet to enact the law and, subsequent, if child marriage 

is practiced, it is not an offence. Furthermore, apart from the state of Enugu, the 11 sales which are yet to 

domesticate the Child Rights Act are in the northern part of Nigeria and these have adopted penal code which is 

based mainly on Sharia law. While the law sets a child to be a person under 18 in Islam no age marks childhood. 

A child’s maturity is established by signs of puberty such as menstruation, the growth of breasts and pubic hair. 

To further buttress the argument that age is a factor contributing to the reluctance of many northern states to pass 

the CRA, when one of Nigeria's northern states, Jigawa, accepted the Child’s Rights Act, its state law did not 

enact the age of 18 as the age of majority as specified in the Act. Instead, it determined the age of childhood 

concerning puberty. However, the state repealed the initial Child Rights Act because it did not follow due process 

before enactment but it is yet to enact a new Child’s Rights Act. Also, many countries such as the US do not have 

a national standard as to marriageable age but countries where marriage of children is not uncommon such as 

India have had the law as under eighteen years 1or many years. One burdening question, is how many people 

around the world are affected? Almost 900 million people, 82 per Cent of these are females which is a great 

impediment to reproductive, maternal, and child health which could eliminate a single generation. When looking 

at the global of prevalence on where child marriage most occurs, you can see that we don’t have figures in many 

areas of the world. But for those places, we see that it is not uncommon and it is particularly prevalent in the areas 

of sub- Saharan Africa and South Asia. However, under the Child’s Rights Act55, two basic principles are laid 

down to guide the operation of all provisions of the legislation. The first principle relates to the best interest of the 

child been the primary consideration while the second principle relates to the protection and care of a child. They 

share the same fundamental right as adults although the right marry is dormant until they are of age but some 

governments such as Nigeria have failed to state a marriageable age although majority of countries state eighteen. 

Child marriage is a violation of human rights and is prohibited by several international conventions and other 

instruments. 

 

5. Conclusion and Recommendations 

This study has been able to identify the fact that child marriage equals early marriage. That given the fact that 

there is lack of a universal definition is due to the different socio-cultural value and religion spread over various 

countries but we as mothers and the government fail to be concerned about the best interest of the children. In this 

regard, due to the array of socio-medical consequences of early marriage, it became logical for countries to 

legislate against child marriages. Nigeria followed suit by enacting the ‘Child’s Rights Act 2004 which amongst 

others out rightly prohibits child marriages. Furthermore, it is clearly stated in the constitution that a child is not 

an adult and every citizen in Nigeria is entitled to fundamental human rights such as the right to education, 

protection and so on. However, the paramount issue is the effective implementation of this law by states within 

the country. In this regard, it suffices to state that the government, the society and various stake holders of the 

society that has the interest of all children must endeavor to condemn any form of child marriage. Furthermore, 

the laws that condemned any forms of marriage must be set in motion to prosecute anyone engage in child 

marriage in Nigeria. 

 

 

 
52 Section 23 of the Child Rights Act Cap. C. 50 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria,2004 
53 Ibid 
54 Aidonojie P. A. and gbale P. O. ‘Legitimacy: The Current Legal Perspective of a Child Born out  of Wedlock under the 

English  and Nigeria Law’, Nigeria Bar Association Section on Legal Practice Newsletter, 2 no. 16(2020): 18-21  
55 Ibid 


