Saudi Arabia reports worrying separation rate as over 350,000 marriages ended in divorce last year

More than 350,000 couples in Saudi Arabia divorced last year, according to the Saudi Women’s Report for 2022. The 30 to 34-year age bracket saw the highest separation rate with over 54,000 instances, closely followed by the 35 to 39-year group with over 53,000 instances.

Although the total number of marriages in the country reached beyond 150,000 in 2020, increasing by 8.9% on the previous year’s statistics, the figures represent a huge surge in divorces. 57,595 marriages ended in divorce in 2020.

Saudi Women Leading The Change In The Kingdom

The statistics also highlight the continuously improving situation for Saudi women, with unemployment dropping by 15.4% in Q4 2022, representing a tangible improvement from years before. Saudi Arabia isn’t a conservative society that people may assume, said Bayan Zahran.

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The Saudi business graduate in the capital Jeddah underscored the unprecedented growth women have been witnessing lately, with the group contributing majorly to every sector, including education, finance, health and astrophysics.

“We have more rights than in many countries in the world,” she added, stressing Saudi women are leading the change in the country and particularly their own lives, including marriages and divorces. In addition, the female labour market participation rate has also increased notably.

Contributions to Saudi Arabia’s economy made by women reached 30.4% in the fourth quarter of 2022, compared to 27.6% in the same period of 2021. The number of self-employment documents issued to women increased from just 7,997 in 2019 to 961,189 in 2021.