JEDDAH: There is an increase in the number of short courses on the etiquettes of marriage and social relations in the Kingdom. The courses are being offered by welfare societies and centers that are both government-run and privately operated.

The majority of courses are related to marriage, and are designed to teach people, especially young men, how to live successful married lives.

“The human development programs have attracted a large number of people of various age groups,” said Mukhtar Muhammad Ahmed, family affairs consultant and head of the Reconciliation Sec-tion at the General Court in Makkah.

Ahmed said some public and private institutions have made it obligatory on their staff to attend the programs. He also said that public centers offer the courses for a nominal fee of between SR50 and SR100, while welfare societies offer them for free and other institutions charge up to SR250. “People who take these lessons tell their friends and relatives to join them; some of them even attend the courses for a second time,” Mukhtar said.

Anas Zaraa, deputy chairman of the board of directors of Al-Mawadah Social Center for Family Guidance and Reform, said the center has seen a huge number of people attending courses, especially young men who opt for the center’s marriage course.

“A number of institutions which provide financial support to young men to get married make it a condition on their recipients that they attend these courses,” he said.

He added that these institutions include the King Faisal Naval Base, the King Fahd Military Hospital and the Welfare Society.

Zaraa said the majority of attendees are young men who receive financial support to get married. He added that around 15 percent of attendees tend to come on their own free will.

Zaraa said young women also attend rehabilitation sessions. More than 6,000 young men and women have so far been trained by his center, he said, adding that the center also provides courses on child education and upbringing. The increasing number of such centers in the Kingdom is coupled with an increasing number of instructors and trainers of both sexes, especially women who specialize in marital relations.

Zaraa said the marital relations courses teach people how to choose a partner, secrets to a stable married life, the art of social relations and the art of dealing with marriage problems.

Zaraa said he hopes such training and rehabilitation courses would help cut down the rate of divorces in the Kingdom.