El Salvador and Guatemala have joined a trend in clamping down on child marriage by passing legislation that would outlaw marriage with minors.

Legislation passed in both countries Thursday to ban such unions even in cases of parental consent or pregnancy.

An El Salvador government survey in 2015 found that there were 22,361 minors between the ages of 12 and 17 who had married or lived in a common-law relationship. Six out of 10 of the minors who were in a relationship with an adult lived in the country’s rural areas.

El Salvador, Guatemala lawmakers pass bans on child marriage – Inquirer