Marriages hit 5-year low but divorces rise

MUSCAT: Divorce rates rose while the number of marriages registered in Oman hit a five-year low last year, according to the latest government statistics.

Ten cases of divorce a day were recorded, compared with 67 marriages, according to the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI), the government’s data portal. 2016 saw the least number of new marriage certificates handed out by the Notary Public Affairs Department in the past five years, with only 24,016 issued.

The majority of these were issued in Seeb, representing 44 per cent of the total number of certificates issues in Muscat.

Nine out of 11 governorates in the Sultanate experienced a drop in the number of new marriages. Dhofar saw no change, while Al Wusta was the only governorate to record a 26 per cent increase from 250 to 312.

According to the report, the number of marriages between Omani men and non-Omani women increased by 23 per cent. Additionally, there was a jump in the number of Omani women, who married non-Omani men.

The divorce certificates issued by the Notary Public Affairs Department in 2016 were pegged at 3,736, reflecting the highest number of divorces in the last four years. In Salalah, 430 divorce certificates were issued, more than three quarters of all the divorces in the Dhofar region.

Across the Sultanate, Al Wusta, North Al Sharqiyah, North and South Al Batinah, Dhofar and Muscat all saw an increase in the number of failed marriages.

On the other hand, Musandam, Al Buraimi, Al Dakhiliyah, South Al Sharqiyah and Al Dhahira reported a drop in the number of divorces. Wilayat of Barka only registered one divorce case, the lowest in the Sultanate.

Dr. Abdulmajeed Al Aghbari, a specialist in the law of Arbitration and Reconciliation, said: “There are a number of reasons why we have seen a rise in the number of divorces. Cultural differences could be one reason, a different level of education, lack of knowledge of the duties and obligations of married life, but the important reason is a lack of communication.”