ABU DHABI: The Abu Dhabi Judicial Department (ADJD) has succeeded in reducing the divorce rate during the year 2022 by about 6 percent, as the cases of family disputes ending in divorce dropped to 3 percent only, compared to 9 percent in 2021.

This is another quality achievement that adds to ADJD's record of consolidating the culture of tolerance and encouraging amicable settlement of disputes, to ensure the preservation of family cohesion and stability.

The ADJD emphasised its commitment to promoting the culture of alternative dispute resolution as part of its endeavours to implement best practices and innovative methods to the highest standards of quality, to enable reconciliation and amicable settlement of family conflicts and civil, commercial and real estate disputes, in line with the vision of H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Presidential Court, and Chairman of Abu Dhabi Judicial Department, to promote supportive initiatives that ensure the cohesion and stability of society.

This decrease in divorce rates, the ADJD explained, is the result of the efforts made by the ADJD's Alternative Dispute Resolution Division to improve performance and develop working methods in line with the social, economic and technical development taking place in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, a fact that has produced a positive effect in the success of these solutions and has made possible better options for resolving disputes outside the traditional court setting, coupled with the efforts of family counsellors to convince parties to opt for amicable solutions in resolving their disputes, which has ultimately contributed to a decrease in the number of cases ending in divorce.

Furthermore, the ADJD has managed to handle more than 99.2 percent of the family disputes that were submitted to its consideration during the year 2022, a rate that represents 15,606 family disputes, and succeeded in amicably resolving 63 percent of the disputes in the emirate of Abu Dhabi.

The decrease in divorce rates is the result of the successful implementation of various outreach programmes and initiatives implemented by the Judicial Department, including the "Reconciliation is Better" (Al Solh Khair) initiative, which helped reduce the divorce rate to about 6 percent during 2022, While this rate stood at 12 percent in 2018 and 13 percent in 2019 and 2020, then dropped in 2021 to 9 percent, and continued its downward trend in 2022 to reach 3 percent, testifying to the development of processes and interactive programmes that have proven beneficial to the parties to the conflict.

It is noteworthy that the "Reconciliation is Better" initiative is one of the innovative undertakings aimed at keeping abreast of developments, raising awareness, consolidating and strengthening the relationship between family members, through intensive guidance sessions conducted by certified family counsellors, and the organisation of training workshops supported by multimedia products and interactive exercises to help assimilate skills for coping with conflicts; all paired with a follow-up plan to ensure compliance with the reconciliation agreement and to address any obstacles that may arise during its implementation.