Which has higher prevalence of underweight, weight for age, Nigeria or Sub-Saharan Africa?

Nigeria, at 24.4% against 15.7% in Sub-Saharan Africa as of 2021.

How many years of comparable data are there for Nigeria and Sub-Saharan Africa?

8 years are reported by both, from 2003 to 2021.

Where does this data come from?

UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children', published as Prevalence of underweight, weight for age (% of children under 5). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Nigeria vs Sub-Saharan Africa: Prevalence of underweight, weight for age

Nigeria

24.4%

in 2021

Sub-Saharan Africa

15.7%

in 2024

Nigeria rank

7th

Sub-Saharan Africa rank

4th

Prevalence of underweight, weight for age over time

Nigeria
Sub-Saharan Africa

How they compare

Nigeria currently reports 24.4% against 15.7% in Sub-Saharan Africa, a difference of 8.7%.

That makes Nigeria's figure about 1.6 times Sub-Saharan Africa's.

Across all 8 years both countries report, Nigeria has been ahead every year.

Nigeria ranks 7th and Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 4th of 96 countries.

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

Head to head by decade

Decade	Nigeria	Sub-Saharan Africa	Difference	Ahead
2000s	26.7%	23.6%	3.1%	Nigeria
2010s	23.5%	18.9%	4.6%	Nigeria
2020s	21.4%	16.9%	4.5%	Nigeria

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher prevalence of underweight, weight for age, Nigeria or Sub-Saharan Africa?: Nigeria, at 24.4% against 15.7% in Sub-Saharan Africa as of 2021.
What is the difference in prevalence of underweight, weight for age between Nigeria and Sub-Saharan Africa?: 8.7%, with Nigeria ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Nigeria and Sub-Saharan Africa?: 8 years are reported by both, from 2003 to 2021.
How do Nigeria and Sub-Saharan Africa rank globally for prevalence of underweight, weight for age?: Nigeria ranks 7th and Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 4th of 96 countries.
Where does this data come from?: UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children', published as Prevalence of underweight, weight for age (% of children under 5). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Nigeria vs Sub-Saharan Africa: Prevalence of underweight, weight for age. Statizoid, drawing on UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children'. Retrieved 19 September 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/compare/prevalence-of-underweight-weight-for-age-percent-of-children-under-5/nigeria/sub-saharan-africa/

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<a href="https://health.statizoid.com/compare/prevalence-of-underweight-weight-for-age-percent-of-children-under-5/nigeria/sub-saharan-africa/">Nigeria vs Sub-Saharan Africa: Prevalence of underweight, weight for age</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator: Prevalence of underweight, weight for age (% of children under 5)
Unit: % of children under 5
Source: UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children'
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage: 110 places, 1,307 data points, 1984–2024
Last refreshed: 17 September 2026

Prevalence of underweight children is the percentage of children under age 5 whose weight for age is more than two standard deviations below the median for the international reference population ages 0-59 months. The data are based on the WHO's 2006 Child Growth Standards.