MARITAL DIVORCE RATES IN AFRICA.

In this post we will be looking at marital divorce rates in Africa, causes of divorce rate in Africa and Ways of preventing divorce in Africa.

INTRODUCTION

The increasing rate of divorce in African homes is an intricate incident happening among African couples and in the world at large. Family is indeed the bedrock of any continent, and world. The rampant occurrence of divorce in African homes is found to have socio-economic and political effect in the society. Primary data were collected through questionnaires (face-to-face and online) countries across the continent and all were analyzed. The data comprises of sixty married homes, and forty divorcees, consisting of sixty married couples living together, twenty men divorcees and twenty women divorcees were selected at random and given copies of questionnaires. The results showed that respondents perceived barrenness or infertility as the major cause of divorce. It is also followed by other causes such as absence of love, ignorance, poverty, religion differences, unemployment, and others. Marriage counselors were encouraged to carry out more studies in this area in other to find a lasting solution to divorce, effect zero tolerance to divorce in the African homes, and device a means of uniting the divorcees so that Africa as a continent will be emulated and set as a standard for other continents to evaluate their marriage performance. The family occupies a pivotal place in every society and in the Africa continent at large. It is indeed the bedrock of the state, nation, continent, and world at large. Healthy families produce a healthy nation and healthy continent while weak families breed weak, corrupt, and a disarray nation and continent. For a nation and continent or the world at large to be at peace, it must first be settled from the family. The sanity in the continent will never rise above that of the family. Divorce in Africa is a persistent event which effects into immediate and a continuous result. Before divorce can be treated in Africa as a continent, it must be traced out from the developed continents like Europe.

Marital Divorce Rates in Africa

In recent years, Africa has witnessed the high rate of divorce as a result of westernization, globalization, urbanization and industrialization. The periods triggered to a monetary industrial economy. Thus, the extended family that used to resolve conflicts or misunderstandings arise between couples was no longer functioning effectively like in the past. The extended family structure eventually broke up in the process; and there was a shift towards the nuclear family system characterized by less involvement of members in the resolution of marital conflicts. It can be argued that, perhaps the most important factor in the increase in divorce throughout the twentieth century has been the greater social acceptance of divorce. In particular, this increased tolerance has resulted from relaxation of negative attitudes toward divorce among various religious denominations. Although, divorce is still seen as unfortunate, it is no longer treated as sin by most religious leaders. The rate of divorce has increased significantly especially during the past several decades globally and particularly in Africa. Divorce results in crisis for family members. For adults, divorce signifies the loss of an intimate relationship that also brought security and support. It also signifies a loss of hopes and dreams as well as feelings of failure. Although there may be relief over the divorce, being alone also brings fear, anxiety, loneliness, and guilt, especially if there are children involved. In Africa, going by the generally expressed rarity of divorce in most traditional settings for instance, the current situation of conjugal closure among women is considered sociologically significant. There is a fact that divorce is caused as a result of continued urbanization, and the influence of formal education. In Africa, it is believed that the value attached to children, barrenness is often considered an important cause of marriage instability in many African populations. Couple’s role obligation has been a modest increase in divorce and divorce rates in traditional family setting, an unrestricted marriage whereby family decision-making such as provider, homemaker and child caretaker are shared equally by the husband and wife. Couple’s ethnic/cultural background coupled with other factors has been another factor causing divorce and adversely affects marriage stability.

In Africa the causes of divorce rate will be grouped into two:

1. Causes of divorce from the wife: The following are the causes of divorce from the wife; they are resulted from the negligence of the wife.

• Transferring all domestic duties to maids and forgetting that a maid is meant to help and not to take over from the wife.
• Excessive attachment to her mother and extended family members.
• Inability to tidy up the house, dress smart and prepare good meal.
• Resentment against what she does not appreciate in the husband, leading to a careless and casualness in relationship.
• Loneliness and self-pity.
• Lack of control on the tongue, complaining and criticizing.

2. Causes of divorce from the husband: The following are the causes of divorce from the wife; they are resulted from the negligence of the husband.

• Lack of love, harshness and callousness.
• Selfishness in spending (spending to satisfy greed rather than need).
• Not willing to leave parents and dependents and cleave unto his wife.
• Neglect of his wife for friend (having more attachment to friends than his wife).
• Supporting and spending for his relations while neglecting the relations of his wife.
• Lack of communication (deliberate hiding of information).
• Lack of care and attention (having no respect and attention).
• Lack of appreciation (always finding faults with her).
• Callousness in attitude which prevents him from listening to her or identifying with her emotions and
• shielding from fault-finding in-laws.
• Playing no active role in the training and upbringing of the children, thus leaving the heavier role to the
• weaker vessel (the mother) while stronger vessel (the man) bears the lighter role.
• Joblessness with no serious effort to be gainfully employed.
• Making delay in child bearing an unpardonable sin of his wife.
• All the causes listed above are in-exhaustive and all encompassing, they are not without solution. This solution
• comes when there is love. Husband and wife will need to get together and talk things over, forgive each other

Ways Of Preventing Divorce in Africa

• The ways of preventing divorce from happening, and they are;
• Caring for one another
• Forgiving one another
• Serve one another
• Considering one another
• Bear each other’s burden
• Be compassionate for each other
• Submit to one another
• Respect one another
• Pray for one another
• Do not defraud one another
• Do not judge nor condemn one another
• Respond wisely to questions
• Provoke not to wrath
• Do not follow that which is evil
• Speak not against each other

Conclusion

Divorce is the dissolution of a marriage by judgment of a court or by accepted custom. It can also be called a total separation. The family occupies a pivotal place in every society and in the Africa continent at large. It is indeed the bedrock of the state, nation, continent, and world at large. Healthy families produce a healthy nation and healthy continent while weak families breed weak, corrupt, and a disarray nation and continent. For a nation and continent or the world at large to be at peace, it must first be settled from the family.