Share of children living with a single parent in Belgium
Belgium: Share of children living with a single parent was 20.1% in 2023. ▬ Flat
Share of children living with a single parent in Belgium, 2003–2023
Source: OECD (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, share of children living with a single parent in Belgium stood at 20.1%. That is the lowest value across all 21 years on record.
That represents a change of down 3.4% on the previous year and down 11.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children living with a single parent in Belgium peaked at 26.2% in 2011 and was at its lowest, 20.1%, in 2023.
Belgium ranks 9th of 34 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
Share of children living with a single parent in Belgium, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 21.8% | — |
| 2004 | 22.9% | +5.0% |
| 2005 | 22.9% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 25.0% | +9.2% |
| 2007 | 22.5% | -10.0% |
| 2008 | 20.9% | -7.1% |
| 2009 | 21.9% | +4.8% |
| 2010 | 22.1% | +0.9% |
| 2011 | 26.2% | +18.6% |
| 2012 | 23.5% | -10.3% |
| 2013 | 22.8% | -3.0% |
| 2014 | 23.6% | +3.5% |
| 2015 | 25.0% | +5.9% |
| 2016 | 24.2% | -3.2% |
| 2017 | 26.0% | +7.4% |
| 2018 | 26.1% | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 24.8% | -5.0% |
| 2020 | 24.2% | -2.4% |
| 2021 | 24.5% | +1.2% |
| 2022 | 20.8% | -15.1% |
| 2023 | 20.1% | -3.4% |
Belgium compared with similar countries
- Belgium's 20.1% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 15.8%, 1.3× the median. (31 countries reporting)
- Belgium's 20.1% is above the median for high income countries, which is 17.6%, 1.1× the median. (33 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 22.6% | 20.9% | 25.0% | 7 |
| 2010s | 24.4% | 22.1% | 26.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 22.4% | 20.1% | 24.5% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Belgium
More reference data data for Belgium
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.9298 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.291 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.09 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.1382 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 2.09 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 3.12 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.93 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.61 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 10.4 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.7526 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children living with a single parent in Belgium?
- Share of children living with a single parent in Belgium was 20.1% in 2023, according to OECD (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children living with a single parent recorded in Belgium?
- The highest recorded value was 26.2% in 2011.
- What is the lowest share of children living with a single parent recorded in Belgium?
- The lowest recorded value was 20.1% in 2023.
- How does Belgium rank for share of children living with a single parent?
- Belgium ranks 9th out of 34 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of children living with a single parent rising or falling in Belgium?
- Over the last ten years it is down 11.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Belgium data come from?
- The figures come from OECD (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children living with a single parent. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 21 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Percentage of children aged 0-17 living with a single parent.