Marriages involving people aged under 21 increased more than sixteenfold, rising from 55 cases in 2024 to 921 in 2025, according to the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR). The figures are contained in the 2025 Civil Registration and Vital Statistics report released by NISR on Wednesday, April 15. The increase follows the gazetting of a revised family and persons law on July 30, 2024, allowing people aged 18 and above to apply for marriage under specific circumstances. According to the report, the number of women who got married under the age of 21 was much higher than that of men. Here, it showed that the women's numbers rose from 53 in 2024 to 848 in 2025. For men, cases increased from two to 73 over the same period. ALSO READ: Under 21 marriage: Over 42 couples approved since new law passed While the legal age of marriage in Rwanda remains 21, exceptions may be granted to young adults, including girls and boys aged 18, for reasons such as employment requirements that necessitate marital status. Overall marriages decline Despite the spike among younger couples, the total number of registered marriages declined slightly. ALSO READ: New law for family and persons gazetted: What you should know A total of 50,256 marriages were recorded in 2025, down from 52,878 in 2024. Gasabo District recorded the highest number of marriages at 5,195. ALSO READ: Getting married at 18: What are “reasonable grounds” in proposed legislation? Other districts with more than 2,000 marriages include Gicumbi, Nyarugenge, Kicukiro, Musanze, Muhanga, Rubavu and Nyamasheke. Nyanza, Gisagara and Ngoma registered the lowest figures, each with fewer than 1,000 marriages. Age patterns The 25 to 29 age group recorded the highest marriage rates for both men at 32.6 per cent and women at 30.2 per cent. Most couples opted for the community property regime, accounting for 48,748 marriages, or 97 per cent of the total. The limited community of property regime accounted for 1,187 marriages, equivalent to 2.4 per cent, while separation of property was chosen in 312 cases, or 0.6 per cent. Agreements by intending spouses were recorded in nine cases. Education trends The data shows that marriages are most common between men and women with similar levels of education. Men with primary education most frequently married women with the same level at 20,113 cases, followed by those with lower secondary at 1,902 and upper secondary education at 1,272. They were less likely to marry women with university education or no formal education. Women with university education were more likely to marry men with a similar level at 2,787 cases or those with upper secondary education at 826.
