Community-Based Interventions for Preventing Child Marriage in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Child marriage (CM) reflects gender inequality, resulting in adverse health outcomes for adolescent girls in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Community participation is vital in preventing CM, but community-led interventions lack sufficient research. This study assessed the effectiveness of community-based interventions in reducing CM in LMICs. Following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses 2020 guidelines, we searched PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, and Web of Science for peer-reviewed studies published between 2015 and 2024. Eight studies of high to moderate quality were summarized through a narrative method, guided by three frameworks: the typology of community approaches, the continuum of participation, and the drivers of marriageability. Analysis shows a competing priority between scalability and sustainability. Economic interventions could delay eligibility but were fragile without normative change. Interventions that emphasized desirability, through dialogue or skills training, more effectively changed girls’ perceptions. Community success relied on participation: passive consultation did not change norms, but “shared leadership” created local enforcement. Addressing CM requires targeted solutions. Effective strategies merge economic incentives for immediate poverty relief with community mobilization and vocational training to shift perceptions of girls’ value. Future policies should change from “empowerment-lite” to integrated “structural-plus” approaches, transforming communities from passive recipients to active enforcers and owners of programs.