Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Cameroon

Cameroon: Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese was 15.1% in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
15.1%
Change on year
up 2.1%
World rank
150th
of 199 countries
All-time high
15.1%
in 2024
All-time low
4.3%
in 1980
Years of data
45
1980–2024

Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Cameroon, 1980–2024

57.51012.5151980200220241980: 4.3 %1981: 4.4 %1982: 4.5 %1983: 4.7 %1984: 4.8 %1985: 5 %1986: 5.2 %1987: 5.4 %1988: 5.6 %1989: 5.8 %1990: 6 %1991: 6.2 %1992: 6.4 %1993: 6.7 %1994: 7 %1995: 7.2 %1996: 7.5 %1997: 7.8 %1998: 8.1 %1999: 8.4 %2000: 8.7 %2001: 9.1 %2002: 9.4 %2003: 9.7 %2004: 10 %2005: 10.3 %2006: 10.6 %2007: 10.8 %2008: 11.1 %2009: 11.3 %2010: 11.5 %2011: 11.7 %2012: 11.9 %2013: 12.1 %2014: 12.3 %2015: 12.5 %2016: 12.8 %2017: 13.1 %2018: 13.3 %2019: 13.6 %2020: 13.9 %2021: 14.2 %2022: 14.5 %2023: 14.8 %2024: 15.1 %

Source: World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 2024, share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Cameroon stood at 15.1%. 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 22.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Cameroon peaked at 15.1% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 4.3%, in 1980.

That places Cameroon 150th 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

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 5.0% 4.3% 5.8% 10
1990s 7.1% 6.0% 8.4% 10
2000s 10.1% 8.7% 11.3% 10
2010s 12.5% 11.5% 13.6% 10
2020s 14.5% 13.9% 15.1% 5

Countries ranked near Cameroon

  1. 147 Cote d'Ivoire 15.9% compare
  2. 148 Czechia 15.9% compare
  3. 149 Democratic Republic of Congo 15.1% compare
  4. 151 Central African Republic 14.6% compare
  5. 152 Equatorial Guinea 14.6% compare
  6. 153 Philippines 14.6% compare

See the full ranking of 199 places →

More health data for Cameroon

All data for Cameroon →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Cameroon?
Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Cameroon was 15.1% 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 Cameroon?
The highest recorded value was 15.1% in 2024.
What is the lowest share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese recorded in Cameroon?
The lowest recorded value was 4.3% in 1980.
How does Cameroon rank for share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese?
Cameroon ranks 150th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
Is share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese rising or falling in Cameroon?
Over the last ten years it is up 22.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Cameroon 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

Indicator
Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese
Unit
%
Source
World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
199 places, 8,955 data points, 1980–2024
Last refreshed

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.