The Determinants of Divorce in Zimbabwe & Its Consequences for Women who Return to their Natal Homes

Bill Kinsey, Free University Amsterdam and University of Zimbabwe and John Hoddinott, IFPRI

Concern is growing at the increasing levels of marital dissolution in sub Saharan Africa. Virtually nothing is known about the well being of these women who often return to their natal home. While it is incorrect to assume that household heads and spouses necessarily share common preferences it may also be incorrect to assume that returning adult daughters share the preferences of other adults in the household.

In Zimbabwe, a 1995 survey indicated an apparent dramatic increase in the rate of divorce in the rural Mupfurudzi study area. Potential causes of marital dissolution were subsequently identified as:

• higher levels of economic stress
• women separating from HIV infected husbands to reduce their own likelihood of infection
• reforms of marital law in the early and mid 1980s

If the increasing divorce rates are a result of the first two causes it is unlikely that women's welfare has improved. The third cause, however, may indicate an empowerment of women to make choices regarding their marital state.

The purpose of the study is to undertake a survey of the same approximately 400 households in order to examine:

• factors that contribute to divorce among Zimbabwean women
• the position of divorced women who decide to return to their natal home.

This survey builds on previous surveys in 1983/84, 1987 and annually since 1992 providing a rich history for these households.

Data collection is now complete and the preliminary results from the new study indicate that divorce rates may have tripled in the study area since the 1980s.