Share of single-parent households in Nigeria

Nigeria: Share of single-parent households was 9.3% in 2018. ▲ Rising

Latest (2018)
9.3%
Change on year
up 44.2%
World rank
40th
of 70 countries
All-time high
9.3%
in 2018
All-time low
6.5%
in 2016
Years of data
13
1990–2018

Share of single-parent households in Nigeria, 1990–2018

02468101990200420181990: 6.9 %1999: 8.6 %2003: 7.1 %2006: 8.1 %2007: 8.2 %2008: 8.4 %2009: 8.1 %2010: 8.5 %2011: 6.9 %2013: 8 %2015: 6.9 %2016: 6.5 %2018: 9.3 %

Source: United Nations (2022) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of single-parent households in Nigeria is 9.3%, measured in 2018. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 44.2% on the previous year and up 10.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of single-parent households in Nigeria peaked at 9.3% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 6.5%, in 2016.

That places Nigeria 40th out of 70 countries with data for 2018, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.

Share of single-parent households in Nigeria, year by year

Annual values for Share of single-parent households in Nigeria, 1990 to 2018.
Year % Change
1990 6.9%
1999 8.6% +24.8%
2003 7.1% -17.3%
2006 8.1% +14.1%
2007 8.2% +1.2%
2008 8.4% +2.6%
2009 8.1% -3.6%
2010 8.5% +5.6%
2011 6.9% -18.7%
2013 8.0% +14.8%
2015 6.9% -13.2%
2016 6.5% -6.8%
2018 9.3% +44.2%

Nigeria compared with similar countries

  • Nigeria's 9.3% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 9.3%, 1.0× the median. (27 countries reporting)
  • Nigeria's 9.3% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 9.6%, 96% of the median. (27 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 7.7% 6.9% 8.6% 2
2000s 8.0% 7.1% 8.4% 5
2010s 7.7% 6.5% 9.3% 6

Countries ranked near Nigeria

  1. 37 Madagascar 9.5% compare
  2. 38 Uruguay 9.5% compare
  3. 39 Paraguay 9.3% compare
  4. 41 United States 9.1% compare
  5. 42 Ethiopia 9.1% compare
  6. 43 Central African Republic 9.0% compare

See the full ranking of 70 places →

More reference data data for Nigeria

All data for Nigeria →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of single-parent households in Nigeria?
Share of single-parent households in Nigeria was 9.3% in 2018, according to United Nations (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of single-parent households recorded in Nigeria?
The highest recorded value was 9.3% in 2018.
What is the lowest share of single-parent households recorded in Nigeria?
The lowest recorded value was 6.5% in 2016.
How does Nigeria rank for share of single-parent households?
Nigeria ranks 40th out of 70 countries with data for 2018.
Is share of single-parent households rising or falling in Nigeria?
Over the last ten years it is up 10.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Nigeria data come from?
The figures come from United Nations (2022) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of single-parent households. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Share of single-parent households in Nigeria. Statizoid, drawing on United Nations (2022) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 24 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-single-parent-households/nigeria/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-single-parent-households/nigeria/">Share of single-parent households in Nigeria</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Share of single-parent households
Unit
%
Source
United Nations (2022) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
70 places, 523 data points, 1960–2021
Last refreshed

Percentage of households comprised of a single parent and his or her children (biological, step, and adopted/foster children), irrespective of children’s ages, and no one else.