Knowledge Brief Health, Nutrition and Population Global Practice BASIC PROFILE OF CHILD MARRIAGE IN SENEGAL Chata Malé and Quentin Wodon March 2016 Child Marriage Series with Education Global Practice KEY MESSAGES:  Measures of child marriage are high in Senegal. The share of women ages 18-22 who married as children is 31.4 percent, but it has declined over time. The share of girls marrying very early, before the age of 15, has also declined.  Child marriage is associated with lower wealth, lower education levels, and higher labor force participation. These are however only correlations, not necessarily causal effects. Box 1: Brief and Series Primer In order to design programs and policies to reduce child marriage, information is needed on the trend in the How is child marriage defined? Child marriage is defined as a practice over time, where it is most prevalent in a country, marriage or union taking place before the age of 18. and what the characteristics of girls marrying early are. Why a series on child marriage? Child marriage has Measuring child marriage is needed to inform policy. significant negative impacts – not only for girls, but also for a range of development outcomes. Demonstrating these impacts will assist governments and others to make the case for Child marriage is recognized as a major development intervening to reduce the practice. issue that affects girls in many developing countries. The practice has been linked to a number of health risks, What are the topics discussed in the series? The series higher fertility, and lower education attainment, among looks at the impacts of child marriage on health, population, others. The negative impact of child marriage on a wide education, employment, agency, and violence, among other range of development outcomes explains why in many outcomes. The welfare, budget, and non-monetary costs of child countries child marriage is now prohibited by law, and marriage are estimated. Legal/institutional aspects and options why the elimination of child marriage is part of the new to reduce the practice are also discussed. Sustainable Development Goals. Yet more is needed to What is the question asked in this brief? The question is: eliminate the practice than adopting laws. In order to How widespread is the practice, not only in terms of the share of inform program and policies to reduce the practice, this girls marrying early, but also in terms of how early they marry? brief provides a basic profile of child marriage in Senegal. The brief is part of a series of standardized briefs on this How is the question answered? Measures and a profile of topic for several countries. child marriage inspired by the literature on poverty are provided. Page 1 HNPGP Knowledge Brief  Almost a third of women in Senegal still marry early. but it will also have other negative consequences for her as well as for her children. The analysis is based on data from the 2014 Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) for Senegal. This Most studies on child marriage report the incidence of is the latest DHS available. Table 1 provides basic child marriage - the share of girls who marry early (before statistics on the age at first marriage for women. Two 18), sometimes also with the share of girls who marry samples are considered: women ages 18 to 22, which is very early, before age 15. Such statistics are useful, but the youngest age group that can be used to measure they do not capture the “depth” and “severity” of the child marriage in the country1, and women ages 18-49 practice very well. Better measures of child marriage can (the women’s questionnaire in the DHS collects data for be adopted from the poverty literature (Ngyuen and women up to age 49). Clearly, a large share of women Wodon (2012). Three measures are used here: the marry below the age of 18, and many do so before the incidence of child marriage or headcount index, the child age of 15, but there are differences in the likelihood of marriage gap, and the squared child marriage gap. marrying as children between the two groups. This Definitions of these measures is provided in the annex. suggests that child marriage has decreased over time, as The measures are estimated for child marriage as well as discussed below. very early marriage defined as marrying before age 15. Table 1: Age at First Marriage for Women (%) The child marriage gap represents the “depth” of child 18-22 years 18-49 years marriage. It takes into account not only the share of girls Not Married 55.6 21.8 who marry early, but also the mean number of years of 18 or Above 13.0 44.0 early marriage. When using the child marriage gap for the Below 12 0.0 evaluation of programs or policies, instead of simply 12 1.0 1.6 looking at the share of the girls who marry early, more 13 2.3 3.1 14 4.4 5.3 weight is placed on the girls who marry at a very young 15 7.1 7.6 age. While the child marriage gap takes into account the 16 7.8 8.2 average number of years of early marriage for girls who 17 8.8 8.4 marry early, the squared gap takes into account the Total 100.0 100.0 square of that number, thereby putting even more Mean age at first marriage 16.5 19.0 emphasis on girls who marry very early and taking into Source: Authors’ estimation. account inequality in the age of marriage among girls marrying early. The consequences of child marriage are not the same whether girls marry at 12 or 17. Measures inspired from The incidence of child marriage in Senegal in 2014 was the poverty literature help in capturing better how early lower than that observed 25 years ago. There has been a girls marry (see the annex). The headcount (H) measures reduction in how early girls marry, but the incidence is still the share of girls who marry early. The child marriage gap high. (CMG) measures the “depth” of the practice, taking into account how early girls marry. The squared gap (SG) puts Child marriage has been reduced over time. even more weight on the girls who marry very early. Table 2 provides trends over time in the measures of child Beyond the share of girls who marry early, other marriage inspired by the poverty literature. Consider first measures of child marriage are also important. the age group 18-22. In that age almost one third of girls marry before the age of 18 (31.4 percent for the 18-22 The negative impact of child marriage for a girl’s health, age group). The child marriage gap (CMG) is at 4.5 education, and well-being is often larger when the girl percent and the squared gap (SG) at 0.8 percent for that marries very early. For example, child marriage is known group. By estimating the same measures on older groups, to have a negative impact on school enrollment and the table provides the trend in child marriage over time. attainment. The earlier a girl marries, the more likely it is When considering the 18 years threshold, there has been that she will drop out early and thereby have a low level of a decline in the headcount. There has also been a decline education attainment. This will not only limit her in other measures, suggesting that girls tend to marry employment and earnings potential for the rest of her life, slightly less early when they marry as children. Nevertheless, the incidence remains high. 1 Child marriage measures must be estimated on the population The fact that girls who marry early may marry less early is older than 18, because some younger girls not yet married in the confirmed by the measures based on the 15 years age survey could still get married by age 18. It is best to measure threshold which suggest a decline in the headcount for child marriage as early as possible after the age of 18 to provide data on conditions as current as possible, which is why the age those measures. Still, overall, the share of girls marrying bracket 18-22 is used here. as children has decreased by eight percentage points Page 2 HNPGP Knowledge Brief  over the last 25 years (the approximate time gap between Household welfare is measured through a wealth index the first and last age group), and the decline for extreme with households categorized in five quintiles from poorest child marriage (15 years threshold) is five points2. to richest. For most women the level of wealth observed is that of the household in which they married, not their Table 2: Trend in Child and Very Early Marriage (%) household or origin, but it is likely that many women marry 18 years 15 years with men who have similar socio-economic profiles, so the H CMG SG H CMG SG quintile after marriage may not be that different from the All 18-49 years 34.3 5.2 1.0 10.1 1.1 0.1 quintile before. Also, for younger women, assets and Age group wealth may be lower than for older women. In Senegal, 18-22 years 31.4 4.5 0.8 7.8 0.8 0.1 the measures of child marriage differ by quintile, but it is 23-30 years 33.1 5.1 1.0 10.0 1.1 0.2 31-40 years 35.2 5.5 1.1 10.6 1.2 0.2 only in the top quintile of wealth that child marriage is 41-49 years 39.6 6.3 1.2 13.1 1.3 0.2 much less prevalent. Source: Authors’ estimation. Table 4: Child Marriage by Quintile, Age 18-22 (%) Girls are more likely to marry early if they live in rural 18 years 15 years areas and are from poorer socio-economic groups. H CMG SG H CMG SG All 18-22 years 31.4 4.5 0.8 7.8 0.8 0.1 Child marriage is more prevalent in rural than in urban Wealth quintile areas. There are also differences between regions, with Poorest 56.9 8.9 1.7 16.8 1.8 0.2 the lowest measures observed in Dakar and the highest Poorer 44.2 6.7 1.2 10.9 1.1 0.1 Middle 32.8 4.7 0.8 8.3 0.8 0.1 measures observed (according to the headcount index for Richer 21.0 2.4 0.4 2.9 0.4 - the 18 years threshold) in Kedougou and Kaffrine, Richest 13.3 1.7 0.3 3.2 0.3 - followed by Kolda, Tambacounda, Saint-louis and Matam. Source: Authors’ estimation. Values rounding to 0.0 not shown. Child marriage is less prevalent in Ziguinchor. The ranking of the regions in terms of the measures obtained Child marriage is associated with lower education with the 15 and 18 years thresholds tends to be similar. attainment and a lower likelihood of literacy. Rural girls are much more likely to marry early than urban Table 5 provides data on child marriage by level of girls. Girls from the bottom four quintiles of wealth are education of the women, as well as literacy. Child much more likely to marry than girls from the top quintile. marriage affects education attainment negatively, because girls often drop out of school when they marry. Table 3: Child Marriage by Location, Age 18-22 (%) The causality goes the other way as well, as the ability to 18 years 15 years pursue one’s education may help delay the age at H CMG SG H CMG SG marriage. This relationship between education and child All 18-22 years 31.4 4.5 0.8 7.8 0.8 0.1 marriage is apparent in the data, in that the measures of Region child marriage tend to be higher among women with lower Dakar 12.6 1.4 0.2 0.7 - - levels of education. The same relationship is observed Ziguinchor 15.5 2.2 0.4 3.3 0.4 0.1 when considering literacy where three categories are Diourbel 37.7 5.6 1.0 11.4 0.9 0.1 considered: the woman cannot read at all, can read part Saint-louis 50.6 7.7 1.6 16.7 2.0 0.3 of a sentence, or can read a full sentence. Tambacounda 54.6 8.5 1.7 16.3 1.8 0.2 Kaolack 45.8 6.4 1.1 8.4 0.8 0.1 Thiès 18.0 2.0 0.3 3.1 0.3 - The relationship between child marriage and schooling is Louga 31.6 5.3 1.1 8.7 1.3 0.2 important for policy as the causality goes both ways. Child Fatick 24.8 3.4 0.6 6.0 0.6 0.1 marriage may lead to dropouts and lower education Kolda 56.4 8.1 1.5 14.5 1.4 0.2 attainment. But the reverse is true as well: keeping girls in Matam 46.2 8.6 1.8 19.9 2.1 0.3 school is often one of the best ways to delay marriage. Kaffrine 68.0 10.0 1.8 16.8 1.7 0.2 Kedougou 69.3 11.5 2.4 28.8 2.9 0.4 Sedhiou 28.2 3.5 0.5 4.0 0.3 - Marrying between the ages of 15 and 17 tends to affect Residence primarily secondary education enrollment or completion, Urban 19.6 2.4 0.4 3.5 0.3 - and may not necessarily affect the completion of primary Rural 46.0 7.1 1.4 13.0 1.4 0.2 education. But marrying even earlier can also prevent Source: Authors’ estimation. Values rounding to 0.0 not shown. girls from completing their primary education (primary school takes in principle six years to complete, but some students start primary school late and may also repeat grades, so the actual age of completion may be delayed). 2 These measures have standard errors (not shown to save space). Some differences may not be statistically significant. Page 3 HNPGP Knowledge Brief  Table 5: Child Marriage by Education Level and Conclusion Literacy Status, Age 18-22 (%) 18 years 15 years This brief has provided a basic profile of child marriage in H CMG SG H CMG SG Senegal. Measures of child marriage are very high. The All 18-22 years 31.4 4.5 0.8 7.8 0.8 0.1 share of women ages 18-22 who married as children is Education 31.4 percent, but it has declined over time. The share of No education 54.5 8.2 1.5 13.8 1.5 0.2 girls marrying very early, before the age of 15, has also Primary, some 31.2 4.5 0.9 9.1 1.0 0.1 declined. Child marriage is associated with lower wealth Primary, compl. 43.0 5.4 0.7 4.2 0.3 - and lower education levels, but not with lower or higher Secondary, some 10.9 1.3 0.2 2.1 0.2 - Secondary, compl. - - - - - - labor force participation. These are however only Higher - - - - - - correlations, not necessarily causal effects. Other briefs in Literacy this series look at potential causal effects. Cannot read 50.5 7.4 1.4 12.4 1.3 0.2 Limited ability 25.8 4.3 0.8 9.2 0.8 0.1 References Full sentence 13.3 1.6 0.3 3.1 0.3 - Source: Authors’ estimation. Values rounding to 0.0 not shown. Foster, J., J. Greer, and E. Thorbecke, 1984, A Class of Decomposable Poverty Measures, Econometrica 52: 761–776. Relationships between child marriage and labor force participation can be complex and depend on context. Nguyen, M. C., and Q. Wodon, 2012, Measuring Child Marriage, Economics Bulletin 32(1): 398-411. Table 6 provides data on labor force participation. In Annex: Methodological Note some countries child marriage may reduce labor force participation through higher fertility. In others, if child The headcount index, child marriage gap, and squared child marriage is associated with poverty, women may leave marriage gap are the first three measures of the so-called FGT little choice but to work. Other effects could be at work, so class (Foster et al., 2014). Denote by q the number of girls who that the relationship between child marriage and labor marry early and by n the number of girls in the overall force participation is complex. In Senegal, child marriage population. Denote by yi the age of marriage of girl i and by z measures are similar among women who work and those the age threshold defining child marriage (18 years of age, but a who do not. However, the type of work associated most lower age threshold can also be used to measure extreme child with child marriage is work with payment in both cash and marriage). The general formula for the FGT class of measures kind, which may be work with low productivity. These depends on a parameter α which takes a value of zero for the headcount, one for the child marriage gap, and two for the basic statistics however do not imply causality. squared child marriage gap in the following expression:  1 q  z  yi   z  Table 6: Child Marriage by Labor Force Participation P  Status, Age 18-22 (%) n i1   18 years 15 years H CMG SG H CMG SG All 18-22 years 31.4 4.5 0.8 7.8 0.8 0.1 This brief was produced as part of the Economic Impacts of Child Working Marriage study, a joint project of the International Center for Research No 31.4 4.5 0.8 7.9 0.8 0.1 on Women (ICRW) and the World Bank, which is supported by the Bill & Yes 31.5 4.5 0.8 7.6 0.8 0.1 Melinda Gates Foundation and the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF). More details on the research can be found at the Type of work project’s website: www.costsofchildmarriage.org. Partial funding for the Not paid 24.6 3.8 0.8 7.1 0.8 0.1 work related to child marriage and education, labor force participation, Cash only 32.0 4.5 0.8 7.1 0.7 0.1 earnings, and program responses has been provided by the Global Cash and in-kind 62.0 8.2 1.4 14.3 1.4 0.2 Partnership for Education. Comments from Jeff Edmeades and In-kind only 39.3 5.5 0.9 10.7 0.7 - Margareta Norris Harrit are gratefully acknowledged. The opinions Source: Authors’ estimation. Values rounding to 0.0 not shown. expressed in this brief are those of the authors only and need not reflect the views of the World Bank, its Executive Directors, of the countries they represent. The Health, Nutrition and Population Knowledge Briefs of the World Bank are a quick reference on the essentials of specific HNP-related topics summarizing new findings and information. These may highlight an issue and key interventions proven to be effective in improving health, or disseminate new findings and lessons learned from the regions. For more information on this topic, go to: www.worldbank.org/health. Page 4