On 7 May 2025, RAF members gathered to discuss the identification and prevention of informal or unregistered child marriages in Jordan, Iraq, Egypt and Lebanon.
The event featured the below RAF members and speakers:
Shatha Al-Habahbih, Prevention Manager at the Jordan River Foundation
Dr. Nour Al Mousawi, Board member at Iraq Health Access Organization
Ghenwa Schinder, Co-founder and Director of Women Alive Organization in Lebanon
On 7 May 2025, RAF members gathered to discuss the identification and prevention of informal or unregistered child marriages in Jordan, Iraq, Egypt and Lebanon.
The event featured the below RAF members and speakers:
Shatha Al-Habahbih, Prevention Manager at the Jordan River Foundation
Dr. Nour Al Mousawi, Board member at Iraq Health Access Organization
Ghenwa Schinder, Co-founder and Director of Women Alive Organization in Lebanon
The Global Programme to Accelerate Action to End Child Marriage (GPECM) is jointly managed and implemented by UNFPA and UNICEF, with UNICEF serving as the convener and administrator. The purpose of the joint evaluation was to provide an independent assessment of progress towards results, sustainability of interventions and programme efficiency and effectiveness, bearing in mind the complexity of programme operations across the four regions and 12 countries. The evaluation highlights good practices and lessons learned from the first phase of implementation to inform future programming.
The purpose of publishing evaluation reports produced by the UNICEF Evaluation Office is to fulfil a corporate commitment to transparency through the publication of all completed evaluations. The reports are designed to stimulate a free exchange of ideas among those interested in the topic and to assure those supporting the work of UNICEF that it rigorously examines its strategies, results, and overall effectiveness. The contents of the report do not necessarily reflect the policies or views of UNICEF.
- Read more about UNFPA–UNICEF Global Programme to End Child Marriage - Research Strategy for Phase II
Phase II (2020–2023) of the UNFPA-UNICEF Global Programme to End Child Marriage aims to accelerate efforts to end child marriage by investing in both married and unmarried adolescent girls, engaging key actors to promote positive gender norms, increasing political support and resources, strengthening respect for laws, and improving data and evidence on effective strategies. Phase III (2024–2030) builds on this by setting a long-term, gender-transformative goal to ensure significantly more adolescent girls enjoy a childhood free from the risk of marriage.
An estimated 650 million women alive today were married as children, and while global child marriage rates have declined by 15% over the past decade—from 1 in 4 to 1 in 5 women—it will take another 50 years to fully eradicate the practice at the current pace. Though 115 million boys and men were also married before age 18, girls remain far more affected, with 1 in 5 young women aged 20–24 married before 18, compared to 1 in 30 young men.
This programme document describes Phase II of the Global Programme to End Child Marriage, implemented by UNFPA and UNICEF. It articulates the content of Phase II, what the shifts are between Phases I and II of the Global Programme, and the comparative advantages of the two agencies.
The Global Programme to End Child Marriage is jointly managed and implemented by UNICEF and UNFPA. The elimination of child marriage and other harmful practices is a Sustainable Development Goal target 5.3, and also a strategic priority of both organizations. The programme is concluding its phase II and planning to commence phase III.
In the last decade, 25 million child marriages have been averted thanks to accelerated progress in eliminating the practice. However, the speed of elimination is not enough to meet the ambitious target of the Sustainable Development Goals: to end child marriage by 2030. Progress seen is now also under further threat due to the adverse impacts of COVID-19: an additional 10 million girls are now at risk of becoming child brides by the end of the decade because of the pandemic.
Gender-based violence against girls: Ending child marriage and accelerating progress for gender equality