New Research Shows Rise In Child Marriages In Iran

Approximately 184,000 marriages involving girls under the age of 15 were registered in Iran between 2017 and 2022 as girls dropped out of school at increasing rates.

A report from the Research Center of the Iranian Parliament said girls were dropping out of school to get married in rising numbers. "The total number of school dropouts in the academic year 2015-2016 was 862,777, and in the academic year 2021-2022, it surged by 26%, reaching 911,272."

Mansour Fat’hi, an associate professor of social welfare at Allameh Tabataba'i University, pointed to poverty as the primary issue in slum areas, underscoring that around 70% of underprivileged children find themselves in the lowest economic conditions amidst Iran's dire economic crisis.

The Ministry of Education reported that approximately 30% of high school students and 20% of girls aged 15 to 18 left school in 2022 due to early marriages.

Despite global standards considering individuals under 18 as "children", child marriages are allowed from the age of 13 for girls and 15 for boys in Iran. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has consistently emphasized policies promoting population growth, fertility, and early marriages.

Iran's Statistical Center recorded around 25,900 cases of girls under 15 getting married in 2022, less than the 32,000 such cases registered in 2021, suggesting discrepancies in the data released by the government.

UNICEF shortlisted Iran in the Middle East and North Africa's top five countries for child marriage in 2020 and according to Iran Open Data, one out of five marriages is among minors.