Reliable data on age at marriage are scarce. In England, for example, the only reliable data from the early modern period comes from heritage registers compiled after death. Not only were the documents relatively scarce, but not all of them made the effort to record the age of the participants, and it seems that the more complete the records, the more likely they are to reveal young marriages. Modern historians have sometimes shown a reluctance to accept evidence of a young age of marriage, dismissing it as a „misinterpretation” of a later copier of documents. [3] In the 12th century, Gratian, the influential founder of canon law in medieval Europe, accepted the age of puberty for marriage (not sex) at about twelve for girls and about fourteen for boys, but recognized consent as meaningful if both children were over seven. [4] Some authorities have stated that such consent to marriage can be given earlier. The marriage would then be valid as long as neither party has annulled the marriage contract before reaching puberty or if they have already consummated the marriage. Judges sometimes honored marriages by mutual consent at the age of less than seven: contrary to the established canon, there are registered marriages of children of two and three years old. [3] In the United States, most states set the minimum age at ten to twelve in the 1880s (in Delaware it was seven in 1895). [9] Inspired by the Maiden Tributing articles, women reformers in the United States launched their own campaign,[10] calling on legislators to raise the legal age to at least sixteen, with the ultimate goal of raising the age to eighteen. The campaign was successful, with almost all states raising the minimum age from sixteen to eighteen in 1920. [5] [11] About half of all U.S.

states allow children under the age of consent to marry with special permission, either from parents or a court. Children as young as ten were among the nearly 250,000 U.S. minors who married between 2000 and 2010, The Guardian reports. Several States are in the process of introducing legislation to fill these gaps. From a distance, one might be tempted to suggest that the age of sexual consent and marriage should be aligned as a means of addressing the problems and health consequences created by the current legal provision on the age of sexual consent and marriage. However, we postulate that the status quo should be maintained. This assumption is due to the fact that laws regarding the age of marriage and the age of sexual consent are imperfect interventions to solve problems [17]. For example, in Ghana, as in many sub-Saharan countries (e.g., Nigeria, Benin, Togo), many confusing determinants can affect the adequacy of its laws. Legal frameworks would also address context-specific socio-cultural norms (e.g.

family and ethnic advocacy) of early marriage, particularly among girls. There is an international consensus that child marriage is a violation of children`s rights that disproportionately affects girls worldwide [4,5,6]. Among the international agreements that have led the discourse on the age of marriage are the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; Convention on Consent to Marriage, Minimum Age for Marriage and Registration of Marriages; Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW); and the Convention on the Rights of the Child [7]. This is why the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs [8] has called for the elimination of child marriage by 2030. The question remains, what constitutes child marriage? According to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, child marriage includes any marriage in which both or one partner is under the age of 18, with or without consent [9]. Parsons et al. [10] also suggest that child marriage includes any legal or customary affiliation in which a boy or girl before the age of 18. Thus, child marriage can be a formal or informal union; it may be legal or customary; it involves marriage before the age of 18; and may be forced or voluntary.

The legal age of consent is 16 or older in most countries, as people of this age are considered mature and capable of making informed decisions. Some of the countries with the age of consent under 16 have other local laws to protect children under the age of 16 from sexual exploitation. Many countries, states or territories also have „close-in-age” exceptions, commonly known as „Romeo and Juliet” clauses. These laws can eliminate legal liability if all participants in a sexual act are minors (for example, two 16-year-olds). In areas where there are no age-related exceptions, a person who has not yet reached the age of consent may be held liable for sexual activity with another minor. For example, if a country does not have a Romeo and Juliet clause and its age of consent is 16, two 15-year-olds who voluntarily have sex with each other could both be prosecuted for legal rape.