This archive report was first published on 24 October 2019.
On October 24, 2019, Tanzania's court of appeal made a landmark ruling that set the minimum marriage age at 18.
Women and child rights advocates in Tanzania hailed the decision as a victory for girl children and Tanzanians in general.
According to Ann Sangai and other advocacy agencies, the ruling would go a long way in protecting young girls in the country, particularly in areas where the culture of early marriages persists.
The ruling marked the end of a two-year legal battle initiated by the Msichana Initiative, which took the case to the court of appeal to raise the minimum marriage age.
Marriage under the age of 18 is unconstitutional and goes against international conventions, said Alex Mngongolwa, a lawyer acting for the advocacy group.
Rebecca Gyumi, a girls' rights activist, had petitioned the court to review the country's marriage act, which led to the Attorney General appealing the decision in 2018, sparking public outrage.
The government's legal counsel had argued that the lower minimum age protected girls who became pregnant out of wedlock, but the court ultimately disagreed.
