Australia vs Papua New Guinea: Prevalence of overweight, weight for height

Australia
26.4%
in 2024
Papua New Guinea
18.5%
in 2024
Australia rank
1st
Papua New Guinea rank
2nd

Prevalence of overweight, weight for height over time

  • Australia
  • Papua New Guinea
510152025200020122024

How they compare

Australia currently reports 26.4% against 18.5% in Papua New Guinea, a difference of 7.9%.

That makes Australia's figure about 1.4 times Papua New Guinea's.

Across all 25 years both countries report, Australia has been ahead every year.

Australia ranks 1st and Papua New Guinea ranks 2nd of 163 countries.

Australia has averaged higher in every one of the 3 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade Australia Papua New Guinea Difference Ahead
2000s 9.0% 6.6% 2.4% Australia
2010s 16.0% 13.9% 2.1% Australia
2020s 24.1% 18.4% 5.8% Australia

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher prevalence of overweight, weight for height, Australia or Papua New Guinea?
Australia, at 26.4% against 18.5% in Papua New Guinea as of 2024.
What is the difference in prevalence of overweight, weight for height between Australia and Papua New Guinea?
7.9%, with Australia ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Australia and Papua New Guinea?
25 years are reported by both, from 2000 to 2024.
How do Australia and Papua New Guinea rank globally for prevalence of overweight, weight for height?
Australia ranks 1st and Papua New Guinea ranks 2nd of 163 countries.
Where does this data come from?
Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), published as Prevalence of overweight, weight for height (modeled estimate, % of children under 5). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Australia vs Papua New Guinea: Prevalence of overweight, weight for height. Statizoid, drawing on Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF). Retrieved 18 September 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/compare/prevalence-of-overweight-weight-for-height-modeled-estimate-percent-of-children-under-5/australia/papua-new-guinea/

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<a href="https://health.statizoid.com/compare/prevalence-of-overweight-weight-for-height-modeled-estimate-percent-of-children-under-5/australia/papua-new-guinea/">Australia vs Papua New Guinea: Prevalence of overweight, weight for height</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Prevalence of overweight, weight for height (modeled estimate, % of children under 5)
Source
Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
208 places, 5,200 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Prevalence of overweight children is the percentage of children under age 5 whose weight for height is more than two standard deviations above the median for the international reference population of the corresponding age as established by the WHO's 2006 Child Growth Standards.