Morocco Faces Scrutiny as Child Marriage Requests Surge to 34,000

In 2018, no less than 33,686 requests for minor marriages were filed with the Courts of the Kingdom. These figures "oblige us to meditate and to question ourselves about the rights of children, guaranteed by the Constitution and at the international level, and about our duty to protect them for the development and the building of a modern democratic society," explained Mohamed Abdennabaoui.

According to him, "the place of the minor is on the school benches and with his parents, far from the responsibilities of marriage and the related complications, especially at the time of raising children."

Several circulars have been sent to the members of the Public Prosecutor’s Offices within the various courts of the Kingdom, for a better consideration of the supreme interests of minors, when applying the provisions of the Family Code.

To this end, all requests that do not comply with the provisions of said Code will be rejected, and the hearings will be an opportunity for the social assistance to provide advice to minors about the repercussions of early marriages.