As a result, in 2016, 23% of girls have been married before their 18th birthday, the eight highest number of child brides in the world (UNICEF, 2016). The participation of women in the labour force is crucial for promoting and sustaining economic growth, and the gains are largest in countries where large gender gaps persist, like Mexico. In Mexico, halving the current gender gap in labour force participation among 15- to 74-year-olds by 2040 could potentially add 0.16 percentage points to the projected average annual rate of growth in per capita gross domestic product (GDP) for the period 2013-40, boosting the projected average growth rate to 2.46% per year. By 2040, this extra growth would translate into an increase of around USD 1100 in GDP per capita, relative to the baseline scenario.