As part of the project “Support for the Prevention and Elimination of Child Marriages in the Municipality of Obrenovac,” implemented within the broader initiative “Children’s Rights Are Human Rights,” supported by the Delegation of the European Union to Serbia and carried out by the Užice Center for Children’s Rights, NGO Praxis held several meetings on the topic of child marriages. These meetings included representatives of the Mobile Team for Social Inclusion of Roma in Obrenovac, the Department for Social Affairs of the Municipality of Obrenovac, the Center for Social Work Obrenovac, the National Employment Service – Obrenovac Branch, the Health Center Obrenovac, preschool institutions, as well as representatives of civil society organizations and Roma activists from Obrenovac.
The issue of child/early marriages in Obrenovac was first brought to attention during the drafting of Local Action Plans (LAP), when child/early marriages were identified as one of the challenges by the working groups. According to participants, the community either tolerates or condemns child marriages, but does not actively support them. A positive development is the increasing number of Roma children in Obrenovac and surrounding areas who are receiving education, with most completing at least primary school. This indirectly reduces the prevalence of child/early marriages and raises the average age at which children enter marital unions. The highest dropout rates occur in the second and third years of secondary school, which significantly increases the risk of entering into child/early marriage.
In 2025, the Center for Social Work in Obrenovac received one request for consent to marry involving a 17-year-old girl. In the previous two years, the center registered two reports of child marriages, which resulted in criminal charges for the offense of common-law marriage with a minor. Risks related to child marriages are most often identified during field visits conducted as part of reviews for recipients of financial social assistance. The general impression is that the Center for Social Work in Obrenovac receives information too late—usually when girls have already entered into (non-)marital unions and/or are already pregnant. The overall conclusion is that local cooperation should be improved and more stakeholders involved in the early identification of risks.
The general goal of the project “Support for the Prevention and Elimination of Child Marriages in the Municipality of Obrenovac” is to prevent and eliminate the practice of child marriages in Obrenovac by raising awareness among the local population—primarily children and school staff—about the harmfulness of this phenomenon and the available protection mechanisms. It also aims to strengthen cooperation among relevant local institutions and improve local policies and protection mechanisms. Through a comprehensive and strategic multi-level approach, the project envisions a series of activities focused on raising awareness and knowledge among children in Obrenovac, with particular emphasis on Roma children, about child marriage as a form of violence against children and the available protection mechanisms, and on the other hand strengthening the capacity of educational institutions to recognize and report cases of children at risk of child marriage, and to support Roma children in continuing their education, thereby reducing school dropout rates. Additionaly, the project is focused on enhancing cooperation among relevant local stakeholders involved in prevention and elimination mechanisms through networking and improvement of local public policies and practices.
Child marriages represent a severe violation of children's rights and in Serbia predominantly affect the Roma population, especially girls. The causes are complex, but fundamentally rooted in multiple discrimination against girls and women, poverty, and lack of adequate access to education.
