Nearly half of young women in Bangladesh were married before turning 18, as UNICEF pressed the government to keep girls in school and close legal loopholes that permit child marriage.
The Bangladesh Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2025 found that 47.2 percent of women aged 20 to 24 were married before age 18.
UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell raised the issue during a three-day visit to Bangladesh, where she called for urgent investment in children’s education, health and protection.
“Keeping girls in school and providing them with the health, education and protection services they need will deliver a brighter future for them, for their communities, and for Bangladesh,” Russell said.
UNICEF said child marriage drives girls out of school, contributes to early pregnancy and limits opportunities later in life. The agency called for girls to complete secondary school and for loopholes in national law that permit child marriage to be closed.
In Korail, Dhaka’s largest informal settlement, Russell met children and parents who spoke about poverty, disrupted education and limited access to basic services.
Adolescent girls described their ambitions and the pressures that can force them out of school and into marriage.
Among the cases highlighted during Russell’s visit was Bushra, who faced being married off at age 14. Community leaders at a UNICEF-supported child protection hub worked with her father to prevent the marriage.
Russell also met senior government officials, including State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam, and welcomed Bangladesh’s commitment to increase spending on education and health.
She urged the government to turn that commitment into action, including its pledge to invest 5 percent of gross domestic product in both sectors.
“Budgets reflect priorities. Investing in children’s quality education, health, nutrition and protection is investing in Bangladesh’s future,” Russell said.
Russell also traveled to Cox’s Bazar, where she met Rohingya children and families and visited a UNICEF-supported learning center.
Students and teachers there spoke about the importance of education and vocational skills. UNICEF said education also protects children from exploitation, trafficking, child marriage and recruitment by armed groups.
“Rohingya children have lost so much to violence, displacement and uncertainty. They cannot lose their education too. The world must invest in them, and in the communities that welcomed them,” Russell said.
Russell appealed to the international community to continue supporting Rohingya refugees and host communities as humanitarian funding declines.
UNICEF and its partners provide life-saving and essential services to Rohingya refugee children and families in Cox’s Bazar.
