Ending Early Unions: The Dominican Republic’s Journey to Protect Children

The Dominican Republic has one of the highest rates of child marriage in Latin America, with 31% of girls married before 18. Despite passing laws in 2021 to outlaw child marriage, informal unions and adolescent pregnancies remain prevalent. World Vision recommends enforcing these laws alongside community-level behavior change campaigns and education programs for girls and boys to shift cultural norms and reduce early unions.