Papua New Guinea vs Sub-Saharan Africa: Prevalence of stunting, height for age

Papua New Guinea
47.6%
in 2024
Sub-Saharan Africa
32.3%
in 2024
Papua New Guinea rank
5th
Sub-Saharan Africa rank
8th

Prevalence of stunting, height for age over time

  • Papua New Guinea
  • Sub-Saharan Africa
01020304050200020122024

How they compare

Papua New Guinea currently reports 47.6% against 32.3% in Sub-Saharan Africa, a difference of 15.3%.

That makes Papua New Guinea's figure about 1.5 times Sub-Saharan Africa's.

The two have swapped places 1 time across 25 shared years of data; in 2000 it was Sub-Saharan Africa ahead.

Papua New Guinea ranks 5th and Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 8th of 162 countries.

Papua New Guinea has averaged higher in every one of the 3 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade Papua New Guinea Sub-Saharan Africa Difference Ahead
2000s 42.4% 41.2% 1.2% Papua New Guinea
2010s 47.5% 34.7% 12.7% Papua New Guinea
2020s 46.9% 32.1% 14.9% Papua New Guinea

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher prevalence of stunting, height for age, Papua New Guinea or Sub-Saharan Africa?
Papua New Guinea, at 47.6% against 32.3% in Sub-Saharan Africa as of 2024.
What is the difference in prevalence of stunting, height for age between Papua New Guinea and Sub-Saharan Africa?
15.3%, with Papua New Guinea ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Papua New Guinea and Sub-Saharan Africa?
25 years are reported by both, from 2000 to 2024.
How do Papua New Guinea and Sub-Saharan Africa rank globally for prevalence of stunting, height for age?
Papua New Guinea ranks 5th and Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 8th of 162 countries.
Where does this data come from?
Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), published as Prevalence of stunting, height for age (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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Papua New Guinea vs Sub-Saharan Africa: Prevalence of stunting, height for age. 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-stunting-height-for-age-modeled-estimate-percent-of-children-under-5/papua-new-guinea/sub-saharan-africa/

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<a href="https://health.statizoid.com/compare/prevalence-of-stunting-height-for-age-modeled-estimate-percent-of-children-under-5/papua-new-guinea/sub-saharan-africa/">Papua New Guinea vs Sub-Saharan Africa: Prevalence of stunting, height for age</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Prevalence of stunting, height for age (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
207 places, 5,161 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Prevalence of stunting is the percentage of children under age 5 whose height for age is more than two standard deviations below the median for the international reference population ages 0-59 months. For children up to two years old height is measured by recumbent length. For older children height is measured by stature while standing. The data are based on the WHO's 2006 Child Growth Standards.