SIERRA LEONE
SIERRA LEONE
FEMALE
MALE
PREVALENCE OF MARRIAGE BY AGE 15
9%
N/A
PREVALENCE OF MARRIAGE BY AGE 18
30%
4%
Year of data:
2019
Source:
DHS 2019
Year of data:
2019
Source:
DHS 2019
LEGAL AGE OF MARRIAGE
18
18
LOWEST PERMITTED AGE OF MARRIAGE DUE TO EXCEPTIONS IN THE LAW
18
18
Law(s) which govern marriage and/or child marriage:
The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2024, Child Rights Act 2007, and Customary Marriage and Divorce Act 2009
ABOUT THE LAW AND ANY EXCEPTIONS
On 2 July 2024, Sierra Leone’s President Julius Maada Bio signed the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2024, into law. The Act sets 18 as the uniform minimum legal age of marriage, removing all exceptions under previous laws.
Previously, while the Child Rights Act 2007 set the minimum age of marriage at 18, the Customary Marriage and Divorce Act 2009 allowed minors to be married with parental consent and stipulated no minimum age.
The 2024 Act harmonizes these laws and criminalises child marriage, enforces strict penalties on offenders, and provides protection and support services for victims.
CAN MARRIED OR PREGNANT GIRLS GO TO SCHOOL?
Following a judgment issued by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Court of Justice on December 12, 2019, President Julius Maada Bio announced that the Government of Sierra Leone had lifted the ban prohibiting pregnant schoolgirls from attending school.
Further, in March 2021, the Government of Sierra Leone adopted the 'National Policy on Radical Inclusion in Schools', which focused on excluded and marginalised groups, including pregnant girls and parent learners. The policy provided a roadmap for removing impediments that restrict access to education for certain groups of historically marginalised children.