This article aims to understand the out-of-school situation of young commercial girls at the Belleville market of the commune of Treichville in Abidjan, despite the adoption in 2015 of a law in Côte d’Ivoire that prescribes compulsory schooling. The qualitative study targeted both young girls and parents of pupils, members of the Direction of social actions of the town hall and representatives of the school administration, including the regional directorate of national education and the school guidance board. Analysis of the content of the data collected shows that the out-of-school presence of girls of school age is linked to conflicting perceptions of the Compulsory Education Policy, the primacy of specific cultures over general law and the defiance of laws in the face of state laxity.