Despite this, couples who married from 2006 to 2013 have had lower divorce rates before the first 10 years, compared to the 2005 marriage cohort.
The cumulative proportion of divorces before the 10th anniversary declined from 17 per cent for the 2005 marriage cohort to 14.4 per cent for the 2013 marriage cohort.
This “signifies greater marriage stability among recent cohorts of married couples”, MSF said.
It added that the “most significant improvement was seen in the fall in dissolution rates for Muslim marriages”.
“While the rate for Muslim marriages remained higher than that of civil marriages across all cohorts, the gap has narrowed significantly for more recent marriage cohorts,” the ministry said.
RISE IN MEDIAN AGE OF FIRST-TIME PARENTS
Couples are becoming first-time parents later compared to a decade ago, findings from the report showed.
Last year, the median age of first-time fathers increased to 33.6 years from 32.9 years in 2014.
Similarly, the median age for first-time mothers increased to 31.9 years from 30.4 years over the same timeframe.
The country’s total fertility rate remained at a record low of 0.97 in 2024, marking the second consecutive year it has fallen below 1.0.
The family trends report also revealed that 56 per cent of fathers with children born in 2023 took government-paid paternity leave in 2023, compared to 53 per cent the year before. The take-up rate for maternity leave continues to remain high, with 74 per cent of mothers doing so in 2022 and 2023.
