“Girls, not brides:” New law bans child marriage and early unions (2024–ongoing)

In November 2024, Colombia passed a law banning child marriage and early unions, a significant step following years of advocacy by civil society organizations. This law aims to protect minors from entering marriage or unions before they’re legally and emotionally ready. Now, no one under the age of 18 can legally marry in Colombia. The legislation aligns with global efforts, supported by organizations like UN Women and UNICEF, to end child marriage and promote gender equality and equal opportunities for girls and young women.

In Colombia, about 23 percent of girls enter marriages below the age of 18.¹ Before the passing of the law, the country’s civil code allowed a person as young as 14 years old to get married with parental consent.² This created a market where young girls in particular were traded in exchange for livestock, land, and other resources.³ 

Child marriages and early unions are harmful practices that violate girls’ rights and perpetuate cycles of poverty. These unions limit girls’ economic independence, autonomy, and ability to make choices about their lives.⁴ When girls marry much older partners, they often lose control over decisions regarding sex, family planning, and their future. Early marriages force girls into exploitative roles, such as child labor, or adult roles such as domestic work, and caregiving—leading them to drop out of school and lose their rights. Poverty itself is a driver of child marriage.⁵ Nearly 40 percent of girls in the world’s poorest countries are married as children, often due to poverty and patriarchal norms that devalue girls. This is worsened by limited access to education, social services, and economic opportunities, leaving girls with fewer options and making marriage seem like their only path to financial security.  Colombia is ranked twentieth globally for the number of girls married or in unions before the age of 15, and eleventh in Latin America and the Caribbean for adolescents married before 18.⁶ 

Law 2447 of 2025 raises the legal marriage age to 18 with no exception, effectively prohibiting child marriage and early unions. It also created a National Comprehensive Program for Life Projects for Children and Adolescents.⁷ This program will be aimed at children and adolescents and  is a major step towards gender equality and the protection of girls in the country.

Implementation

Civil society organizations in the region had been fighting child marriage in Colombia for decades, denouncing it as a violation of human rights. After 17 years and eight rejections in Congress, a ninth attempt succeeded.⁸ Two Congresswomen, Jennifer Pedraza and Alexandra Vásquez,  presented the law, supported by years of advocacy from civil society. Congress voted to pass it on November 13, 2024 and President Gustavo Petro sanctioned the law in February 2025. The feminist movement advocating for sexual and reproductive rights and the children’s rights movement—typically at odds—found common ground in support of the bill. The project gained unanimous support despite political polarization, and a lengthy debate in Congress.⁹ The law also created the “National Comprehensive Program for Life Projects for Children and Adolescents which strongly focuses on prevention by promoting awareness and dissemination of information on the effects, causes, and consequences of early unions.

Cost

The author could not find any information regarding this. 

Assessment

While it is too early to conduct an impact evaluation assessment of the legislative change, it is a huge political success. Moreover, it is well documented that preventing the marriage of children and young teenagers is better for them.¹⁰ 

At the time of writing, advocacy groups are calling for the Colombian government to ensure the effective implementation of the law and adequate funding, particularly through the National Comprehensive Program for Life Projects for Children and Adolescents, established by this law to increase the prevention of early unions. Noting that legal prohibitions are not sufficient, groups are calling for improved legal and institutional frameworks, in particular training of  public officials to enforce the law and investments in protection and support such as access to health services, education and justice, to ensure the protection of girls. Addressing the root causes of child marriage and early unions, such as socioeconomic and gender inequalities, and raising awareness and promoting legal literacy must be prioritized, with campaigns needed to inform the public about children’s rights and the dangers of child marriage and early unions. Finally, the involvement of children and adolescents in decision-making processes that affect their lives is crucial, as well as supporting programs that foster their autonomy and development.¹¹ These steps, if prioritized, will help ensure the law’s success and its lasting impact on the protection of young people’s rights, and girls in particular.

Additional Information

The author thanks Laura Ospina, Senior Program Officer at the NYU Center on International Cooperation for their support in the research of this piece. 

Photo of two rings stacked on each other © Adobe Stock/Popelniushka.

Tags

• Children & Youth
• Colombia
• Gender
• Justice
• Latin America & the Carribean
• Middle-Income Country
• Social Protection