Activists hail Sierra Leone child marriage ban, urge action on female genital mutilation

Sierra Leone this week adopted a landmark law banning child marriage — a move heralded by rights groups and foreign partners but leaving some activists demanding more action to end pervasive female genital mutilation (FGM) in the country.

Hundreds of thousands of girls are married before turning 18 in the West African nation, where a persistently patriarchal society puts women at risk of multiple forms of gender-based violence.

Sierra Leone has some of the highest rates of child marriage...