Child marriages in Morocco drop significantly from 2017 to 2024, reports Minister Ouahbi

Justice Minister Abdellatif Ouahbi announced on Monday before the House of Representatives a sharp decline in child marriages, dropping from 26,298 cases in 2017 to just 8,955 in 2024.

Responding to an oral question on the issue, Ouahbi noted that requests for child marriages have fallen by nearly 20,000, a development he said reflects growing awareness of the seriousness of this phenomenon.

The minister recalled that in 2020, around 11,830 requests were recorded in rural areas, compared to 4,527 in urban areas. This downward trend continued in 2023, with 9,021 total requests, only 2,880 of them in urban settings.

Ouahbi stressed that child marriage is largely rooted in cultural norms and levels of awareness, underscoring the need to better educate society about the role of girls and ensure they have access to all opportunities for personal development.