Gallup finds that about one in eight women aged 18 to 60 worldwide — 13% — are unmarried and have children younger than 15 in their household. However, this figure is sharply higher in a few regions, especially sub-Saharan Africa at 32% and Latin America at 24%…

Overall, 84% of all women aged 18 to 60 across sub-Saharan Africa say they have children younger than 15 in their household. Widespread poverty also often leads extended families to cohabitate, so it may be more likely in low-income regions for women who have children in their household to be a relative other than their mother. Countries in Southeast Asia and South Asia also have high fertility rates, but relatively few women in these regions, where traditional family structures remain the norm, are unmarried.