International Journal of Educational Policy Research and Review Vol.8 (2), pp. 35-42 April, 2021 Available online at https://www.journalissues.org/IJEPRR/ https://doi.org/10.15739/IJEPRR.21.005 Copyright © 2021 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article ISSN 2360-7076 Original Research Article The effects of early marriage and early fertility on women educational attainment: Evidence from Lesotho Received December 30, 2021 Revised 10 February, 2021 Accepted 23 February,2021 Published 23 April, 2021 Katleho J. Tjamela 1 , Ernest Ngeh Tingum* 2 , Mapalesa Rapapa 1 1 Department of Economics, National University of Lesotho (NUL), Roma, Lesotho. 2 Department of Economics, University of Namibia (UNAM), Windhoek, Namibia. *Corresponding Author Email: etingum@unam.na Tel: +27 620343627 Lesotho, like many developing countries, has a high rate of adolescent births and a high prevalence of child marriages. Despite all of the government's efforts to reduce early child marriage and adolescent fertility, the problem persists. Theories and literature suggest that endogeneity exists in early marriage. This is due to socioeconomic and cultural factors, as well as a reverse causal relationship between early marriage, early fertility, and educational attainment. As a result, the purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of early marriage and fertility on women's educational attainment in Lesotho. To account for the presence of endogeneity, a two-stage residual inclusion is used. Early marriage and early fertility, according to the findings, are barriers to higher educational attainment for women in Lesotho. Based on the findings, it is suggested that the government strengthen its policies by raising national awareness of the negative consequences of early fertility and early marriage, as well as emphasising the importance of higher female educational attainment in the country. Keywords: Early fertility, early marriage, women, educational attainment, Lesotho. INTRODUCTION Throughout the world, marriage and child birth are regarded as moments of celebration and milestones in adult life. This is because they signify a physical and emotional union that serves as an opportunity for couples to grow in selflessness. However, the prevailing practice of marriage and fertility at an earlier age does not call for celebration. Early fertility is regarded as one of the main contributing factors to premature infant child-birth. In contrast, early marriage has adverse negative effects, especially on young females and the society. In particular, early marriage violates the human rights in general and those of the female child, mainly by reducing educational and job opportunities (Bayisenge, 2006). Even though child marriage is a global issue that cuts across all countries, it was noted that the issue is more alarming in Sub-Saharan Africa (Yaya et al., 2019). Globally, over 67 million women aged 20–24 years were married as adolescents by 2010, with 20% of these young women identified as Africans. This indicates that 14.2 million adolescents who are less than 18 years had been married off annually, making almost 39,000 young women married daily. The study further indicates that if the trend continues unchecked, this would increase to about 15.1 million girls’ marriage at early age per year, beginning from 2021 to 2030 (Yaya et al., 2019). According to a report from a census conducted by the Bureau of Statistics (2016) in Lesotho, 24 % of women are married before the age of 18. The statistics placed Lesotho in the 13th position of countries in the Eastern and Southern African region with a child marriage prevalence rate above 20 %. Accordingly, approximately 1,567 children drop out of school each year due to adolescent pregnancy, which is primarily caused by adult and adolescent males. The majority of adult males respond by paying damages to the family of the adolescent which lead to these girls’ early marriage due to pregnancy. The issue of child marriage and