Early Marriage Among Young Girls in Eastern Ethiopia: Trends From 2008 to 2018

Abstract

This study examined the trend of early marriage among adolescent girls in eastern Ethiopia. We analyzed data extracted from the Kersa community-based surveillance database for girls in the age group of 10 to 17 for the decade ending in 2018. The Kersa Health and Demographic Surveillance System (Kersa HDSS) is a demographic and health surveillance and research center established in 2007 by Haramaya University to serve as a research center and source of health and demographic data in Eastern Ethiopia. The annual incidence of early marriage was calculated per 1,000 person-time. Chi-square test for linear trend was done using Epitools Software to examine the change in rates over time. The overall incidence of early marriage among the study participants was 40.48/1,000 per year (95% confidence interval [CI], 39.1–41.9) with an increasing incidence rate from 32.38/1,000 girls per year in 2008 (95% CI, 27.4–38.3) to 40.18/1,000 girls per year in 2018. A relatively high incidence of early marriage was observed among rural girls, those who had no formal education, and unemployed girls. Empowering rural girls through increased access to education is needed to reduce the incidence of early marriage.