Stats SA released the latest South African divorce statistics on 27 February 2023. These statistics deal with divorces granted in 2021.
In 2021, there were 18,208 divorces granted, with an increasing trend observed for black Africans and a declining trend for white population groups. First-time marriages accounted for the majority of divorces, with more wives than husbands initiating the divorce process. The highest number of divorces were granted in Gauteng, followed by Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and Eastern Cape. There were 17,345 children under the age of 18 affected by the divorces.
The release also revealed a decreasing trend in registered civil marriages, except for a slight increase in 2016, a fluctuating trend in customary marriages, and an increasing trend in civil unions, except in 2020. The number of divorces granted showed an increasing trend from 2012 to 2017, followed by a decrease till 2020, and then an increase in 2021.
However, the quality of data needs improvement, particularly in the completeness of information related to the province of registration, way of solemnization, marital status at the time of marriage for data on marriages and civil unions, and unspecified population group and occupation of divorcees.
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