by TONY BEST

BARBADOS HAS ONE of the highest rates of marriage in the world.

According to statistics compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit, Barbados was ranked third in the world when it came to marriage,
just behind Cyprus and Bermuda.

That's the positive news.

The not-so-good news was that Barbados' divorce rate is at such a level that it is ranked 50th in the world.

Barbados' rate of 13.1 marriages for every 1 000 people wasn't too far behind Cyprus' 15 and Bermuda's 13.8. But it was way ahead of those for the Cayman Islands 9.6; Jamaica's 8.5; the United States 8.2; Aruba's 6.9; Puerto Rico's 6.5 and Belize 6.2 per 1 000 head of population.

At the same time, more than 40 per cent of the households in Barbados are headed by women, one of the highest in the Western Hemisphere.

Interestingly, only a handful of states in the United States – Arkansas 13.4; Hawaii 22.8; and Nevada 62.4 – had higher rates than Barbados. New York which has the largest single number of Bajans in the United States and Canada had a marriage rate in 2004 of 6.8, almost half of Barbados'.

With couples walking up the aisle at a quick pace in Barbados, it shouldn't come as a surprise that the islanders are also high on the
list of people who are seeking divorces.

As a matter of fact, the Caribbean is also proving to be the world's divorce capital, with Aruba heading the list at 5.3 divorces per 1 000 population. The United States was next with 4.8.

Puerto Rico 3,7; Bermuda, The Netherlands Antilles and Cuba 3.0; Canada 2.3; Guadeloupe 2.1; Bahamas 1.7; Cayman Islands 1.6; Barbados 1.4 and Martinique 1.2 all made the world's top 60 places for divorces.

The Economist was quick to point out that marriage figures could be affected by the population age structure and government efficiency in registering marriages. The figures for Barbados may also be higher because of the prevalence of common law ties which aren't registered by the government.

In the case of the Caribbean, the data could also be influenced by the tourists who flock to the various destinations
in pursuit of their dream wedding.

However, the marriage and divorce rates suggest that Bajans see marriage as an important institution; Barbados' divorce rate may be high by world standards but it is at least a third of the United States' and marriage is more popular in the developing world than in the industrialised countries.