Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Benin
Benin: Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese was 12.3% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Benin, 1980–2024
Source: World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Benin is 12.3%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of up 2.1% on the previous year and up 23.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Benin peaked at 12.3% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 2.8%, in 1980.
That places Benin 167th out of 199 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 3.3% | 2.8% | 3.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.8% | 4.0% | 5.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 7.6% | 6.2% | 8.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.1% | 9.1% | 11.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 11.8% | 11.3% | 12.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Benin
- 164 Comoros 12.4% compare
- 165 Mozambique 12.4% compare
- 166 Sri Lanka 12.4% compare
- 168 Uzbekistan 12.2% compare
- 169 Sierra Leone 12.2% compare
- 170 South Sudan 11.9% compare
More health data for Benin
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,002 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 13,632 deaths (2100)
- Deaths in armed conflicts based on where they occurred 0 deaths (2026)
- Deaths in armed conflicts by region 0 deaths (2026)
- Age population, age 25, male, interpolated 123,369 (2025)
- Age population, age 25, female, interpolated 120,115 (2025)
- Age population, age 24, male, interpolated 126,844 (2025)
- Age population, age 24, female, interpolated 123,427 (2025)
- Age population, age 23, male, interpolated 130,723 (2025)
- Age population, age 23, female, interpolated 127,171 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Benin?
- Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Benin was 12.3% in 2024, according to World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese recorded in Benin?
- The highest recorded value was 12.3% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese recorded in Benin?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.8% in 1980.
- How does Benin rank for share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese?
- Benin ranks 167th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese rising or falling in Benin?
- Over the last ten years it is up 23.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Benin data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of children and adolescents aged 5 to 19 years old that are defined as either overweight or obese. This means their weight-for-height is more than one standard deviations from the median of the World Health Organization (WHO) Child Growth Standards.