Female headed households (% of households with a female head) by country
Female headed households refers to the percentage of households that are headed by females.
Countries reporting
34
Highest
45.1%
Haiti
Lowest
8.2%
Mali
Median
25.6%
Years covered
34
1990–2023
Data points
236
What the numbers show
Female headed households (% of households with a female head) is currently reported for 34 countries. The highest value is 45.1% in Haiti; the lowest is 8.2% in Mali.
The median across all reporting countries is 25.6%, and the mean is 25.0%.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 6.
Over the past decade 25 countries rose and 9 fell. The largest increase was in Dominican Republic (up 43.5%), and the largest decrease in Niger (down 19.5%).
Female headed households: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Haiti | 45.1% | 2017 | up 3.2% | rising |
| 2 | Zimbabwe | 40.6% | 2015 | up 7.7% | rising |
| 3 | Dominican Republic | 39.9% | 2013 | up 43.5% | rising |
| 4 | Ghana | 36.6% | 2022 | up 8.3% | falling |
| 5 | Colombia | 36.4% | 2015 | up 20.1% | rising |
| 6 | Kenya | 33.9% | 2022 | up 5.3% | flat |
| 7 | Liberia | 33.2% | 2022 | up 8.9% | rising |
| 8 | Nepal | 32.7% | 2022 | up 16.0% | rising |
| 9 | Rwanda | 31.9% | 2020 | down 4.2% | rising |
| 10 | Mozambique | 31.8% | 2023 | down 10.7% | rising |
| 11 | Cambodia | 31.1% | 2022 | up 14.8% | rising |
| 12 | Tanzania, United Republic of | 28.6% | 2022 | up 17.7% | rising |
| 13 | Uganda | 28.3% | 2019 | down 5.0% | rising |
| 14 | Zambia | 26.8% | 2018 | up 10.3% | rising |
| 15 | Cameroon | 26.0% | 2022 | up 2.0% | rising |
| 16 | Philippines | 25.8% | 2022 | up 36.5% | rising |
| 17 | Peru | 25.7% | 2012 | up 31.8% | rising |
| 18 | Malawi | 25.6% | 2017 | up 3.6% | rising |
| 19 | Benin | 24.9% | 2018 | up 10.7% | rising |
| 20 | Madagascar | 24.7% | 2021 | up 5.6% | rising |
| 21 | Senegal | 24.5% | 2021 | down 1.2% | rising |
| 22 | Ethiopia | 22.1% | 2019 | down 15.3% | flat |
| 23 | Côte d'Ivoire | 19.4% | 2021 | up 7.8% | rising |
| 24 | India | 17.5% | 2021 | up 21.5% | rising |
| 25 | Guinea | 17.1% | 2021 | down 1.2% | rising |
| 26 | Bangladesh | 15.8% | 2018 | up 23.4% | rising |
| 27 | Nigeria | 14.9% | 2021 | down 2.6% | rising |
| 27 | Türkiye | 14.9% | 2013 | up 19.2% | rising |
| 29 | Indonesia | 14.8% | 2017 | up 14.7% | rising |
| 30 | Burkina Faso | 13.4% | 2021 | up 35.4% | rising |
| 31 | Egypt | 12.9% | 2014 | up 0.8% | rising |
| 32 | Niger | 12.8% | 2021 | down 19.5% | rising |
| 33 | Jordan | 12.2% | 2018 | up 18.4% | rising |
| 34 | Mali | 8.2% | 2021 | down 11.8% | rising |
About this data
Female headed households refers to the percentage of households that are headed by females.