More than 5,400 people receive an allowance as single mothers in the Maldives, statistics have shown.
Figures released by the Maldives Statistics Bureau on the occasion of World Children's Day show that the National Social Protection Agency (NSPA) provides a monthly allowance to 5,443 persons who care for children as single parents.
NPSA also provides a post-parent allowance to 148 temporary guardians.
Statistics show that children account for 31 percent of the Maldives population, representing a total of 119,159 children, including 61,150 boys and 58,009 girls.
Of the total, 38 percent of children reside in Male', which is 45,252 children, with 73,907 children residing on other islands.
On average, 4.5 percent of boys and 3.1 percent of girls are children with special needs, statistics show.
One in three children lives in multi-dimensional poverty, an index that measures the percentage of households deprived along the dimensions of monetary poverty, education, and basic infrastructure services.
