Women who marry or form a sexual union at a young age—a common occurrence in most developing countries—often cut short their education and, in doing so, reduce their chances of being self-reliant. Early union can also make women more vulnerable to abuse and discrimination. Women who enter a union at a young age are likely to have husbands who are much older than they are—up to 15 years older in some countries—which lessens the chances that the young women will be able to participate in decisions about childbearing or be able to negotiate the use of birth control. Furthermore, sexual unions formed at young ages face a high risk of breaking up; in most societies, women who must then raise children alone face extreme economic and personal difficulties.

In some less developed countries, half or more of all women marry or start a union before they reach age 18, and 70% or more do so by the time they are 20. Sizable proportions even form unions before they are age 15. In wealthier countries, such as the United States and France, about 10% of women marry by age 18, and roughly one third do so by the time they are 20. In all societies, women with the least education, who are usually poor, start a union earlier than women with more schooling.

Early marriage generally leads to early motherhood. In many developing countries, at least 20% of women—and in some about 50%—have had their first child by the time they are 18 years of age. By age 20, at least one third of women in most countries, and two thirds or more in some, have had a baby. About 10% of girls in a few countries have had a child by age 15. Women who marry early are also likely to have many children in quick succession.

Although early marriage or union is the norm in much of the developing world, women are beginning to postpone making this commitment, largely because they are staying in school longer. Later marriage is increasingly common in Asia, the Middle East and some parts of Latin America. In Colombia, Jordan, Mexico, the Philippines and Thailand, for example, the proportions of women in their late 20s who have not yet formed a union equal or exceed those in France and the United States (18%-25%).

In countries where women do not marry or form unions at young ages, premarital sexual activity is especially likely, and often leads to premarital pregnancies and childbearing: In Sub-Saharan Africa, up to 45% of married women conceive or bear their first child before marriage. In several Latin American countries and in the United States, roughly 20% or more do so.

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