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http://www.arabnews.com/saudi-arabia/news/740751
Saudi Arabia – High Number Unmarried Men, Women – Costly Weddings Key Factor
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In this file photo, a Saudi man
stands in front of a wedding dress at a shop in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (AP)
DAMMAM:
SULTAN AL-SUGHAIR — Saturday 2 May 2015
There are now 1.4 million women
and 600,000 men who are unmarried in the country, according to statistics
issued by the Ministry of Economy and Planning recently.
At a workshop held by the scientific endowment body at King Abdulaziz
University (KAU), participants argued that there are several reasons for Saudis
delaying their nuptials.
The high cost of weddings was the top reason, followed by issues over social
class raised by parents, and men and women having unrealistic expectations of
prospective partners. Fear of failure was also one of the major reasons.
Essam Kawthar, chief executive officer of the KAU endowment body, said that the
workshop was held to find solutions to this phenomenon, which was a “worry for
the entire Saudi society.”
Kawther said there are 45 fears about marriage, but participants only
identified a few reasons that prevented people from tying the knot.
The fears include loss of career opportunities after marriage, partners
concealing some physical and psychological problems, domestic violence and
jealousy over a partner’s progress in life, he said.