Islamic law has official jurisdiction of operation in Egypt, where personal status laws regulate matters such as marriage, divorce, and child custody. Like many such countries, Egypt is trying to reform its divorce law. One of its approaches has been to address the financial ramifications of divorce; Egyptian authorities took steps last month to address the country’s climbing divorce rate. The Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) proposed a bill requiring a compulsory insurance cover against divorce. According to Egypt’s national financial regulator, the law is “aimed at ensuring that men can pay alimony to ex-wives in the event of divorce — whatever their economic condition,” as reported by Ahmed Mustapha in a recent OZY article. At present, the FRA is preparing to conduct an actuarial study in order to determine the insurance premiums and compensation amounts in the event of divorce.
Different approaches have been taken in different countries: Professor Zubair Abbasi explores women’s right to divorce in India and Pakistan, where judges tried to ensure gender equality under Islamic divorce law through a different legal solution.