Child marriage in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the eighteenth highest in the world. In a child marriage, one or both parties are under the age of eighteen years old. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), 37% of girls are married before they turn eighteen, and 10% of girls are married before age fifteen. Though significantly less than the rate of child marriage for girls, 6% of boys in the DRC are married before age eighteen.
Even though child marriage is prevalent in the DRC, it is illegal. The legal age of marriage is eighteen. There are multiple international laws and agreements that ban the practice. However, the DRC is one of seven countries in the African Union to have signed but not ratified the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC), which explicitly prohibits child marriage.
Parents sometimes force their daughters into child marriage to gain financial or social status benefits. Other causes include tradition and conflict in the region which leads to higher rates of child marriage. However, child marriages have consequences, as married girls experience worse health outcomes, lower levels of education, higher rates of violence, and psychological impacts.
Many organizations and programs have been initiated to combat child marriage, especially on the international scale from the United Nations. Advocates against the ubiquity of child marriage have fought for outreach or intervention programs.
Laws
National
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has laws against child marriage. In the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, men and women have the right to marry the person of their choice. Marriage is recognized as an act between a man and a woman of legal age in which both people consent. The legal age of marriage is eighteen, and the law specifically prohibits children from marrying. There are some instances in which marriages can be nullified. If a marriage occurs without the consent of both parties, or if either party is underage, the marriage must be declared null. Marriages can be contested until both partners reach the age of eighteen years old. Anyone who was influenced by violence to enter into a marriage can request an annulment. However, laws against child marriage lack enforcement in the country. Some people in the DRC are unaware of these laws, including many people in North Kivu. Other people are reluctant to bring child marriage cases to court because of the finances involved in the legal proceedings.
Even though many laws in the DRC oppose child marriage, dowry payments and the designation of husbands as the heads of households uphold child marriage. Husbands are required to pay a dowry to the family of the bride upon marriage. The dowry provides a financial incentive for families to marry their daughters off, particularly in poor rural areas. In addition to the dowry, the Family Code identifies the husband as the head of the household, with his wife legally obligated to obey him. Wives must live with their husbands and ask for permission to travel or to access family planning services. Husbands and wives are both allowed to initiate divorces, but the wife's family must repay the dowry if a divorce occurs.
International
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has signed and ratified The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), but not ACRWC. CEDAW prohibits child marriage and more specifically, the trafficking of women in Article 6. Some consider child marriage a form of trafficking and thus, a violation of CEDAW. The Democratic Republic of the Congo signed CEDAW on July 17, 1980, and ratified it on October 17, 1986. However, the DRC has signed but not ratified the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC). Additionally, the DRC has not ratified the United Nations' 1962 Consent to Marriage, Minimum Age for Marriage, and Registration of Marriages. This treaty denounces any form of marriage in which full and free consent is not provided, and it also requires that participating states set laws on the minimum age requirements for marriage. However, the Consent to Marriage, Minimum Age for Marriage, and Registration of Marriages does not address child marriage explicitly.