Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese was 5.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Ethiopia, 1980–2024
Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Ethiopia recorded 5.0% for share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in 2024. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of up 3.9% on the previous year and up 39.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Ethiopia peaked at 5.0% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 1.6%, in 1981.
Ethiopia ranks 196th of 199 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Ethiopia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 1.6% | — |
| 1981 | 1.6% | -0.2% |
| 1982 | 1.6% | +0.1% |
| 1983 | 1.6% | +0.4% |
| 1984 | 1.6% | +0.6% |
| 1985 | 1.7% | +0.9% |
| 1986 | 1.7% | +1.0% |
| 1987 | 1.7% | +1.2% |
| 1988 | 1.7% | +1.4% |
| 1989 | 1.7% | +1.5% |
| 1990 | 1.8% | +1.8% |
| 1991 | 1.8% | +2.0% |
| 1992 | 1.9% | +2.3% |
| 1993 | 1.9% | +2.5% |
| 1994 | 1.9% | +2.6% |
| 1995 | 2.0% | +2.7% |
| 1996 | 2.1% | +2.8% |
| 1997 | 2.1% | +2.9% |
| 1998 | 2.2% | +3.1% |
| 1999 | 2.3% | +3.3% |
| 2000 | 2.3% | +3.4% |
| 2001 | 2.4% | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 2.5% | +3.5% |
| 2003 | 2.6% | +3.4% |
| 2004 | 2.7% | +3.3% |
| 2005 | 2.7% | +3.2% |
| 2006 | 2.8% | +3.1% |
| 2007 | 2.9% | +3.0% |
| 2008 | 3.0% | +2.9% |
| 2009 | 3.1% | +2.8% |
| 2010 | 3.2% | +2.7% |
| 2011 | 3.3% | +2.8% |
| 2012 | 3.4% | +2.9% |
| 2013 | 3.5% | +3.0% |
| 2014 | 3.6% | +3.0% |
| 2015 | 3.7% | +3.1% |
| 2016 | 3.8% | +3.1% |
| 2017 | 3.9% | +3.2% |
| 2018 | 4.0% | +3.2% |
| 2019 | 4.2% | +3.3% |
| 2020 | 4.3% | +3.3% |
| 2021 | 4.5% | +3.5% |
| 2022 | 4.6% | +3.6% |
| 2023 | 4.8% | +3.8% |
| 2024 | 5.0% | +3.9% |
Ethiopia compared with similar countries
- Ethiopia's 5.0% is below the median for low income countries, which is 9.8%, 51% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Ethiopia's 5.0% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 12.0%, 41% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 1.7% | 1.6% | 1.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.0% | 1.8% | 2.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.7% | 2.3% | 3.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.6% | 3.2% | 4.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.6% | 4.3% | 5.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Ethiopia
More health data for Ethiopia
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.67 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.9494 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 744.3 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 19,997 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 148 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 1.34 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0709 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 1.36 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Ethiopia?
- Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Ethiopia was 5.0% 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 Ethiopia?
- The highest recorded value was 5.0% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese recorded in Ethiopia?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.6% in 1981.
- How does Ethiopia rank for share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese?
- Ethiopia ranks 196th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese rising or falling in Ethiopia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 39.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ethiopia 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
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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.