According to Sisterhood Global Institute (SIGI), the statistical annual report issued by the Civil Status and Passports Department (CSPD) has revealed a total of 10 marriage cases of girls aged under 15 years in Jordan during the year 2017.

The report also revealed that out of the 52620 marriages registered in the Kingdom, a total of 7718 spouses where aged between 15 and 19 years old (1402 males and 6316 females).

SIGI added that in 2017, Shari'a Courts recorded 77,700 marriages, 10,434 of which were of minors aged between 15-18 years; marking an alarming 13.4% of the total marriages in Jordan.

Jordan has a daily average record of 213 marriage-related contracts, including 29 cases of early marriage ( associated with the 15-18 age group), 71 cases of divorce, 15 cases of early divorce (divorce within the first year of marriage).

Article 10 of the Jordanian Personal Status Law No. 36/2010, states that a marriage requires that both the fiancé and fiancée are sane adults (meaning aged above eighteen years). However, the following paragraph of the same Article adds: “Notwithstanding what is mentioned in the first paragraph of this article, the judge may, along with the approval of the Supreme Judge, authorize special-case marriages of those aged fifteen years old, according to directives issued for this purpose, if the marriage is seen as a necessity required to achieve benefits and where those married are, in accordance, granted full eligibility in issues related to marriage, divorce, and what results out of them."

While the law clearly marks marriages of individuals aged less than 15 years old as illegal, and while Article 279 of the Jordanian Penal Code No. 16/1960 states that performing such marriages or taking part of them is punishable by law with imprisonment from one to six months, cases of these marriages are existing.

The question remains, as SIGI states it, how did these 10 girls get married? And on what basis did CSPD consider these marriages as official?