The plan aims to safeguard minors’ rights and development possibilities by raising the marriage age to 18. President Gustavo Petro still needs to sign it into law.
With parental approval, a person as young as 14 years old can currently get married under the nation’s civil code.
On September 20, 2023, President Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone speaks at the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York City. A bill prohibiting underage marriage in Sierra Leone was signed into law by Bio on July 2, 2024.
With a new bill, Sierra Leone bans child marriage.
