Child marriage is being increasingly recognized globally as a fundamental violation of human rights. Child marriages occur globally in varying degrees across countries and regions. South Asia alone accounted for almost half of the total number of child marriages that have occurred globally.

The aim of this review was to present the recent evidence on the impact of early marriage and/or pregnancy on the rates of girl child drop out. It also synthesises evidence that focus on laws, policies and practices that force pregnant girls or new mothers out of school.

This is the first policy brief produced by the Young Marriage and Parenthood Study (YMAPS), looking at research findings from Young Lives (Ethiopia, Peru, Vietnam and the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana) and Child Frontiers (Zambia).

This report summarizes 2015 state-level findings from a large-scale study of six Indian states titled Unintended Pregnancy and Abortion in India (UPAI).