Early Marriage and Human Development Index in Indonesia

Abstract

Early marriage is a violation of children's rights and can have significant negative impacts. Some of the
negative impacts of early marriage include physical and mental health risks, barriers to achieving good
human resources, and increased risk of maternal and child mortality. This study aims to analyze the
determinants of early marriage on the Human Development Index (HDI) using the Geographically
Weighted Regression (GWR) method. The estimation results show a significant negative relationship
between early marriage and the Human Development Index (HDI), as well as a significant relationship
between almost all factors affecting early marriage and HDI, except GRDP per capita, contraceptive use,
housing ownership, and child abuse cases. In order to improve human resources and community welfare,
the main focus needs to be improving access to education, protecting children's rights, reproductive
health, and poverty reduction. Preventing early marriage is key to providing optimal opportunities for
children to grow and develop and promoting higher human development.