RESOLVING

Child marriage is any marriage carried out below the age of 18 years before the child is physically; physiologically, and psychologically ready to shoulder the responsibilities of marriage and childbearing. Child marriage affects both boys and girls, but girls are often more disproportionately affected. The issue of child marriage remains a global menace that has raised several concern because of the harm that comes with the pernicious practice. However, significant efforts have been made to combat the insidious practice through several instruments, towards achieving global realization in the Structural and Developmental Goals Scheme. According to UNICEF, several jurisdictions e.g England and India, among others have harmonized their legal systems to explicitly prohibit child marriage. in spite of these progressive legal strides towards the eradication of child marriage globally, the incident of the practice is quite prevalent in Africa. This practice is prevalent in Africa because it is greatly entrenched in the fabrics of her socio-cultural and religious beliefs. Nigeria is not indifferent in this arena, the antecedence of child marriage is still rampart in Nigeria, in spite of several instruments prohibiting the engagement of such practice and its inimical effect to children. The intrinsic factor responsible for the unremitting practice, among others, is the adoption of a pluralist legal system at its core and the disharmony of legislation in the subject of legal minimum age which have been exploited as a cloaked enterprise for the justification of child marriage in Nigeria. This work critically examines the issue of legal minimum age for marriage in Nigeria and the attendant problems associated with the disharmony in legislation in respect to a legal minimum age for marriage in Nigeria. It further addresses the consequences that unfold as a result of child marriage and other attendant violation