More women than men are now initiating divorce in South Africa, says StatsSA.
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SOUTH Africa’s marital landscape is shifting; fewer people are getting married, while more couples are getting divorced.
It’s mostly women who are initiating divorce, and in many cases they are younger than their spouses. In 70.7% of cases where women filed for divorce, they were younger than their husbands.
This is according to the latest figures from Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) which also show that 24 202 divorces were granted across the country in 2024, an 8.9% increase from the previous year.
In total, 57.2% of all divorces granted in 2024 were initiated by women.
In contrast, 102 373 marriages and unions were recorded in 2024, down by 2.6% from 2023. Compared with 2015, that reflects a 28.5% decline over a 10-year period.
Stats SA says the trend has been consistent and reflects the “broader evolution in women’s autonomy and their access to legal avenues that protect their rights within marriage.”
The numbers also show that in most cases, 89.1% of women were ending their first marriage. Only 6.8% were in their second marriage, while less than one percent had been married three times.
Age also appears to shape divorce patterns. While 70.7% of women who filed for divorce were younger than their husbands, only 16.5% were older than their spouses.
Between 2020 and 2024, the average age for male divorcees rose from 45 to 46 years, while for women it increased from 41 to 42 years.
The figures suggest people are marrying later and spending more years together before deciding to end the relationship.
Money also seems to play an important role in whether people stay in or leave a marriage.
In 2024, 44.6% of women who filed for divorce were employed, mainly in professional, semi-professional and technical occupations. Those in managerial and administrative roles made up 8.4%, while women in clerical and sales positions accounted for 7.9%.
The data suggests steady employment and financial stability can widen the choices available to women when relationships become strained.
The length of a marriage offers another lens into relationship stability. The largest share of divorces, 26.7%, occurred in marriages that lasted between five and nine years.
This was followed by marriages of 10 to 14 years, which accounted for 21.3% of divorces. A further 15.1% involved couples who had been married for less than five years.
Overall, four in every 10 divorces granted in 2024, 41.7%, involved marriages that had lasted less than a decade.
Behind these figures, experts say, are families trying to navigate deep emotional, social and financial consequences.
Jaishiela Kooverjee, a trauma therapist and family wellness specialist, says divorce often carries multiple social and psychological effects.
These include absent fathers, an increase in single-parent homes and added pressure on grandparents, who increasingly step in as caregivers. It also brings financial strain, particularly for women who often become primary breadwinners while still carrying much of the childcare responsibility.
“Some women feel that they’ve outgrown their partners or that they are emotionally immature. But women are increasingly financially independent and, in some cases, they earn more than they did in the past, which gives them the courage to make tough changes,” she said.
Professor Amanda Gouws, a gender politics expert from Stellenbosch University, says women are increasingly leaving marriages not because they are less committed, but because the cost of staying — economic, emotional and physical — is often deeply unequal.
She says women continue to carry a disproportionate share of household responsibilities and that, together with economic stress, unequal power relations and safety concerns, are among the main reasons women initiate divorce.
“I don’t think this has got anything to do with gender equality. I think it’s got everything to do with gender inequality.”
Gouws says many women are frustrated by patriarchal norms that assign rigid roles to men and women, — men as breadwinners and women as caregivers, while the reality is that most households now rely on two incomes.
“Women always have the dual burden. They work and then they come home and they have to care for kids and do the housework and everything. And so women just get tired of men not doing their part.”
According to Gouws, physical abuse is another key reason women initiate divorce. She says the most dangerous moment for women leaving abusive relationships is often when they first disclose their intention to leave.
Gayle Mokwena, a clinical psychologist and lecturer at North-West University, says infidelity remains one of the most common reasons people seek divorce.
She says early marriage, unrealistic expectations, power imbalances and financial strain frequently contribute to marital breakdown.
Mokwena says that external pressures can also play a role, including interference from relatives, religious differences and a lack of family support.
And she warns that divorce is emotionally difficult for both men and women.
“There’s just that deep sense of brokenness,” she said.
“But after that, there can be positive growth. They survive through inner strength, endurance and self-reliance. It’s called post-traumatic growth, where it teaches resilience.”