Although there is a growing evidence base on the drivers of child marriage, comparatively little is known about the experiences of married girls in refugee settings and how their development trajectories diverge from those of their non-married peers, particularly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing on cross-national panel data from Bangladesh and Jordan, this article explores diversity in child marriage experiences in contexts affected by forced displacement, highlighting how married girls’ well-being differs from that of their unmarried peers, and how COVID-19 has reinforced these differences. The findings highlight that married girls in contexts affected by displacement are disadvantaged in multiple ways, but that the patterning of disadvantage varies across contexts, and that marriage can also have protective effects in certain contexts. The COVID-19 pandemic has, however, served to exacerbate existing inequalities in all contexts.
Authors: Baird, Sarah; Murphy, Maureen; Seager, Jennifer; Jones, Nicola; Malhotra, Anju; Alheiwidi, Sarah; Emirie, Guday; Rashid, Sabina; Sultan, Maheen
Type: Journal Article
Year: 2022
