Divorced women in Nigeria: empowered or disempowered?

Abstract

This paper is a report of a study that investigates the outcomes of divorce among divorced women in semi-urban and rural communities in Ekiti State, Nigeria to determine whether they were empowered or disempowered being divorced. A total of 52 divorced woman purposively selected were interviewed. The findings revealed that almost half of the divorced women reported that they were empowered in some areas depending on their socio-economic status, educational qualifications and age but overall, the outcome(s) of divorce was more disempowering than empowering for the vast majority of the divorced women. Within this context, understanding reasons for disempowerment of divorced women is a key theme for understanding marriage, divorce and empowerment in Nigeria.