Uniting to end child marriage in the Southern African Development Community (SADC)

At the SADC People’s Summit held in Antsirabe, Madagascar, from 15 – 17 August 2025, Equality Now and its partners called on Heads of State and Government to take immediate steps to align laws, fund survivor services, and accelerate efforts to end child marriage across Southern Africa.

Child marriage remains a widespread and deeply entrenched violation of children’s rights across Southern Africa. While some SADC Member States have taken commendable steps to strengthen legal protections, many have failed to act decisively, leaving children exposed to the devastating consequences of marrying too young. 

18 years with no exceptions

SADC countries need to accelerate efforts to set and enforce 18 as the minimum age of marriage across the region, with no exceptions. As noted in the policy brief, countries that have legislative exceptions referencing cultural and religious laws are Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, and Zambia. 

The clarion call by Equality Now and Partners at the summit was for Governments to close all legal loopholes and fully harmonise statutory, religious, and customary laws to guarantee that no child can be married under any circumstances.

In addition, governments are encouraged to commit dedicated funding for comprehensive support services for survivors, including healthcare, education, psychosocial support, and access to justice.

Key recommendations to SADC Heads of State: 

The convening reviewed progress in implementing the SADC Model Law on Eradicating Child Marriage, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, the Maputo Protocol, and relevant UN frameworks. They identified persistent gaps and proposed urgent steps to strengthen protection for survivors.  

The event also highlighted opportunities for legal redress and legal reform, and strategies for legal reform to ensure survivor-centred and survivor-responsive protection and support mechanisms.                         

Laws to set the marriage age at 18 

They called on SADC governments to align statutory, religious, and customary laws to eliminate contradictions, ensuring the minimum marriage age at 18 years without exceptions, and accelerate the implementation of regional and international legal instruments, including the SADC Model Law on Eradicating Marriage and Protecting Children in Marriage and Gender-Based Violence.

Use data to track child marriage and its impact on girls’ rights

Through a communiqué for SADC Heads of State and Government, Equality Now and Its Partners further recommended the establishment of national child rights observatories and disaggregated data systems to track the prevalence and impact of child marriage, including its effects on education, healthcare, justice, and the well-being of survivors.

Prioritise survivor protection and services for girls

Survivor protection was also earmarked as a concern. The seven organisations asked for the prosecution of child marriage cases to end impunity, create an Anti-Child Marriage Fund in line with SADC Model Law on Child Marriage to finance survivor protection programmes, and guarantee free access to healthcare, education, counselling, and legal support. They also recommended the establishment and strengthening of the accessibility and  efficiency of facilities that are survivor-centred and uphold the rights, dignity, and safety of survivors.

Strengthen coordination across sectors to end child marriage

Collaboration across health, education, justice, and social services ministries to deliver protection and prevention responses remains critical. The call requests governments to develop and build the capacity of law enforcement, the judiciary, and traditional, community, and religious leaders to implement survivor-centred interventions, while providing adequate budgets, training, and tools to enforce laws effectively.

Engage communities and leaders to end child marriage

There was equal emphasis on collaborating with traditional, religious, and community leaders to drive awareness, prevent child marriage, provide safe reporting spaces, and reintegrate survivors into schools, families, and communities.

Empower girls through education and protection

The communique also called for the prioritisation of the return-to-school policy for pregnant and married girls,  and a further acceleration of school curriculum reforms to include knowledge on child marriage prevention, rights awareness, access to justice, and available protection and support services.

Accountability to end child marriage and protect girls’ rights

SADC leaders, especially those in the SADC Parliamentarian Forum, are requested to develop and implement monitoring frameworks to track, document, and measure progress to strengthen parliamentary accountability, and establish permanent parliamentary sub-committees on ending child marriage.

Champion survivor and youth leadership

For change to be realised, the empowerment of young women and girls to be the central actors in prevention, protection, and advocacy becomes a key component. Institutionalisation of survivor-led platforms to influence policy design, implementation, and monitoring, and embed youth- and girl-led initiatives in national strategies continues to play a pivotal role.

These recommendations align with the  SADC Model Laws on Eradicating Marriage and Protecting Children in Child Marriage and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. By adopting them, SADC Heads of State can accelerate the eradication of child marriage, protect survivors, and uphold the rights and dignity of children across the region.