A collaborative report by Judy Toll (SI Perth), Sarah Barnbrook (SI Melbourne) and Cherrie Power (SI Shepparton and SI Melbourne).

As delegates at CSW69, we joined a powerful side event focused on one of the most urgent issues facing girls worldwide: child marriage. Co-hosted by the Permanent Mission of Sierra Leone to the UN, Unchained at Last, Girls Not Brides, and other partners, the event brought together global advocates to discuss what’s needed to end child marriage by 2030—and to ensure no girl is left behind.

Sierra Leone’s Minister of Gender and Children’s Affairs, Dr. Sasha Mangoy, opened the event with an encouraging example of national progress. Thanks to determined policy work, child marriage in Sierra Leone has dropped from 48% in 2008 to 30% in 2019. In 2024, the country passed its Prohibition of Child Marriage Act—an important legal milestone in a broader strategy combining education, awareness, and community-led change.

The Need for Legal Reform in Australia:Australia currently allows marriage for girls as young as 16, with parental consent, and those under 18 must also seek court approval. This creates a legal loophole that exposes young girls to coercion and abuse. Advocating to raise the legal age of marriage to 18 in Australia is an important step toward protecting the rights and wellbeing of minors, especially young girls, by ensuring they are fully protected under the law before entering such a significant commitment.

Why increase the marriage age to 18? The legal age for marriage in Australia should align with international standards that place the minimum age of marriage at 18. Early marriage often leads to serious consequences: early pregnancy, interrupted education, increased risk of domestic violence, and loss of autonomy.

By raising the marriage age, Australia can protect minors and ensure they have the time and resources to grow into adulthood before making such an important decision.

Stories that Drive Change

The event featured moving testimony from activists and survivors. Fraidy Reiss, founder of Unchained at Last, shared her story of being forced into a violent marriage at 19. As a young bride in New York, she was subjected to a virginity exam, forced into sex, and became a mother without ever having consented. It took her 15 years to escape. Her courage now drives her mission to end child marriage in the U.S., where it remains legal in most states.

Other speakers echoed the urgency:

Mona Sinha, Global Executive Director of Equality Now, called child marriage a “growing crisis fuelled by deepening inequalities, climate change, and conflict.” She reminded us that every year, an estimated 12 million girls are married before the age of 18—losing their education, safety, and opportunities in the process.

Sarah Hendricks, Director of Policy Programs at UN Women, described child marriage not just as a human rights violation, but “a barrier to achieving gender equality.” She warned that at the current pace, it will take 68 years to eliminate child marriage globally: “So not in 68 years—it must end now.”

Saba Nishan, from the African Child Policy Forum, emphasised that while most countries in Africa have set 18 as the legal minimum for marriage, progress depends on making related rights—like birth registration—accessible and enforced. Without this, protective laws often fall short in practice.

Dr. Chelsea Clinton, Vice Chair of the Clinton Foundation, reminded the audience that child marriage is not just a distant issue. “It’s happening here in the United States too.” She pointed out that in California, there’s no minimum age for marriage, yet a girl must be 18 to file for divorce. “We are not immune to the backlash,” she added, urging continued pressure on policymakers to protect girls’ rights everywhere.

Most people aren’t aware that child marriage is legal in the US. Between the years 2000 and 2021, some 307,365 girls aged between 10 and 18 were married off to older men by their families without consent. A lifetime of enduring violent rape and bearing children. Losing access to their fundamental human rights.

Sex with a child under 18 is illegal in all parts of the US, but in 37 of the 50 states if they marry the child, sex is then regarded as being legal.

What Needs to Change

Ending child marriage globally requires legal change, but also deep cultural shifts. Many girls are still silenced by stigma, pressure, and lack of safe options. Even where laws exist, enforcement is weak.

As highlighted at the event, progress must be driven on several fronts:

• Legal Reform: Set the minimum age of marriage at 18, with no exceptions.
• Community Leadership: Work with traditional and religious leaders to shift harmful norms.
• Education and Opportunity: Empower girls through education and give them real alternatives to early marriage.
• Survivor Leadership: Create safe platforms for survivors to lead change and shape solutions.

The Role of Advocacy

As Soroptimists and global advocates, we all have a role to play in advocating for the end of child marriage. Here’s how we can make a difference:

• Support survivors and help amplify their voices.
• Work with communities to challenge practices that enable early marriage.
• Advocate for consistent legal protections that ensure no girl is left behind.

A Global Promise We Must Keep

Together, we can make significant strides in eliminating child marriage and protecting the rights of girls. By amplifying successful examples like those from Sierra Leone and the Dominican Republic, and continuing to collaborate across borders, we are one step closer to a world where no girl is forced into marriage before she is ready.

Let us stand firm in our commitment to make a difference and ensure that the promises made at international forums like the Beijing Platform and the UN Sustainable Development Goals are kept. The time to act is now.