Rwanda recorded 4,479 divorces registered through civil-status services in 2025, with couples married for less than 15 years accounting for the largest share, according to data from the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda.
The figures show that 2,629 divorces were granted by courts and subsequently registered with civil-status authorities in 2025.
Kigali City recorded the highest number of registered divorces at 1,820, followed by Southern Province with 980, Eastern Province with 820, Northern Province with 520 and Western Province with 339, according to NISR.
Couples married for five to nine years recorded the highest number of divorces, with 1,076 cases, followed by those married for 10 to 14 years, with 928 cases.
The figures come as Rwanda’s courts continue to handle thousands of marital disputes. The Judiciary reported 2,674 divorce cases in the 2024-25 judicial year, compared with 2,833 in the previous year.
Legal practitioners and families cite several factors behind marital breakdowns, including property disputes, infidelity, domestic violence, financial pressures, poor communication and failure by spouses to meet family responsibilities.
Some legal experts also say couples increasingly take marital disputes directly to court instead of first seeking mediation from relatives or trusted family members.
The 2024 law governing persons and family gives the Family Council a role in protecting family interests and resolving disputes within families. The law provides for a ministerial order to determine the council’s composition, responsibilities and functioning, but the order had not been issued at the time of the report.
The divorce figures show that marital breakdown remains a significant issue, particularly among couples in the early and middle years of marriage.
