Child Marriages in Kenya by County

The marriage of a person below the age of eighteen years is considered a child marriage. In Kenya, marriages are considered legitimate only if the individuals involved are above the age of eighteen years.^[1]

Despite this distinction, terms such as teenage, adolescent, and early marriages are still widely used interchangeably, even though unions of eighteen and nineteen-year-olds are above the age of majority in most nations.^[2]

In Kenya, DHS determines the extent of child marriages through metrics such as the median age at first marriage among women and men aged 15 – 49 at the time of the survey.

Many women today were married before they reached 18 years.

When asked at what age they got married, 6.5% of women aged 20 – 49 in 2022 said they were married at precisely 15 years of age. The figure rose to 7.7% after including only women aged 25 - 49.

The share of women who were married at exactly eighteen years old was much larger, with 22.4% of women aged 20 – 49 in 2022 saying they were married at exactly that age. Among the older cohort of women aged 25 – 49, 25.4% said they were married at exactly eighteen years old.^[3]

These figures not only show the extent of girl child marriages but also teenage and adolescent marriages.

Child marriages are rarer among men, with only 0.4% of men aged 20 – 49 in 2022 saying they were married at exactly 15 years. Moreover, only 3.4% said they were married at exactly 18 years.

The difference between men and women can be attributed to the higher median age at first marriage among men. In 2022, the median age at first marriage among men in Kenya was 25.8 years, and in women, 21 years.

The median age at first marriage is rising, but child marriages still exist.

The median age at first marriage describes the years when most people in a country marry. A higher median age implies that people marry later when they are older, while a lower one indicates marriages at younger ages.

In Kenya, the median age at first marriage is 21 for women and 25.8 for men, suggesting that women marry at earlier ages than men. A higher median age for men could explain why only a few enter child marriages.

However, the median age at first marriage has been increasing, meaning more men and women are getting married at older ages. For instance, it was 21.6 years among women aged 25 – 29 in 2022, higher than the median age of 20.9 among women aged 45 – 49.

Among men aged 30 – 34 in 2022, the median age at first marriage was 26 years, higher than 25.7 among men aged 45 – 49.^[4]

A higher median age does not imply that child marriages have seized. Among women, for instance, those aged 25 – 29 had the highest median age at first marriage of 21.6 years in 2022. Among them, 5.6% had married at exactly the age of 15. Similarly, of women aged 30 – 34 in 2022, with a median age at first marriage of 21 years, 9% had married by exactly age 15.

The same is true of men, with those aged 30 – 34 having a median age at first marriage of 26 years, but 0.3% had married at exactly age 15.^[5]

Child marriages were more prevalent in the past and more common among older women.

More women in older age groups said they were married before their eighteenth birthday than younger women. Of those aged 15 – 19, only 1% said they married at exactly 15 years, compared to 2.2% of women aged 20 – 24 and 5.6% of women aged 25 – 29.

The rates were much higher at older ages. For instance, among women aged 35 – 39, 10% had married at exactly 15 years. In men, 1.1% of those aged 45 – 49 had married by age 15, compared to 0% of those aged 15 – 19.^[6]

Child marriages predict higher fertility.

There is a strong association between girl-child marriages and fertility. Fertility rates describe the average number of children a woman gets throughout her childbearing years.^[7] The earlier the marriage, the longer the fertility window and the more children the woman will have.

In Kenya, child marriages are associated with a lower median age at first sexual intercourse and higher fertility.

Analysis of the 2019 census findings shows that counties with the highest child marriages also tended to have higher age-specific fertility rates for women aged 15 – 19. 

The same effect is evident in other countries and regions. In Nigeria, a woman married before eighteen years had an average of 7.09 children compared to those married after eighteen years, who had an average of 4.8 children. The mean difference between those who married early and later was 2.29 children.^[8]

Child marriages are more prevalent in some counties than in others

The percentage of female children aged 12 to 15 who were married in 2019 was highest in West Pokot, where 7.8% were married, followed by Samburu 7.5%, Mandera 7.2%, Garissa 6.7%, Wajir 6.7%, Marsabit 6.6%, Elgeyo Marakwet 6.2%, and Baringo 6%.^[9]

The lowest levels of child marriages among girls aged 12 – 15 were in Nairobi at 1.7%, Mombasa at 2.2%, Kiambu at 2.3%, Kilifi at 2.4%, Taita Taveta at 2.5%, and Siaya at 2.7%.

Broadening the scope to girls aged 12 -18, counties with the highest levels of child marriages were Mandera at 13.6%, Samburu at 13.4%, Tana River at 12.4%, West Pokot at 11.5%, Wajir at 11.4%, Marsabit at 11%, and Garissa at 10.4%.

The counties with the lowest child marriage rates among girls aged 12 – 18 were Nairobi (3.2%), Kiambu (3.3%), Nyeri (3.4%), Makueni (3.6%), Nyandarua (3.7%), and Uasin Gishu (4%).^[10]

Child marriages predict higher teenage pregnancies.

Child marriages are associated with a lower age at first birth and a higher rate of teenage pregnancies. These pregnancies, on the other hand, tend to have poor outcomes for the mother and the baby.^[11]

In Kenya, counties with the highest rates of child marriages also had high levels of teenage pregnancies. 50.1% of girls aged 15 – 19 in Samburu County have ever been pregnant, a figure that corresponds with its high levels of child marriages, as seen in the table above.

Other counties with very high rates of teenage pregnancies include West Pokot 36.3%, Marsabit 29.4%, Narok 28.1%, and Meru 23.6%. These counties all had very high levels of child marriages.

See Also

1. Marriage rates in Kenya
2. Polygamous marriages in Kenya
3. Child marriages in Kenya and fertility rates
4. Divorce and separation rates in Kenya
5. Teenage pregnancies in Kenya by county

References