Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Rwanda
Rwanda: Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese was 9.8% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Rwanda, 1980–2024
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 Rwanda stood at 9.8%. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of up 3.0% on the previous year and up 37.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Rwanda peaked at 9.8% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 3.1%, in 1980.
That places Rwanda 181st 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.
Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Rwanda, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 3.1% | — |
| 1981 | 3.1% | +0.6% |
| 1982 | 3.1% | +0.8% |
| 1983 | 3.1% | +1.0% |
| 1984 | 3.2% | +1.2% |
| 1985 | 3.2% | +1.4% |
| 1986 | 3.3% | +1.5% |
| 1987 | 3.3% | +1.7% |
| 1988 | 3.4% | +1.8% |
| 1989 | 3.5% | +1.9% |
| 1990 | 3.5% | +2.1% |
| 1991 | 3.6% | +2.2% |
| 1992 | 3.7% | +2.4% |
| 1993 | 3.8% | +2.5% |
| 1994 | 3.9% | +2.8% |
| 1995 | 4.0% | +3.0% |
| 1996 | 4.1% | +2.9% |
| 1997 | 4.3% | +3.1% |
| 1998 | 4.4% | +3.4% |
| 1999 | 4.6% | +3.6% |
| 2000 | 4.7% | +3.7% |
| 2001 | 4.9% | +3.7% |
| 2002 | 5.1% | +3.6% |
| 2003 | 5.2% | +3.3% |
| 2004 | 5.4% | +3.0% |
| 2005 | 5.6% | +2.8% |
| 2006 | 5.7% | +2.6% |
| 2007 | 5.8% | +2.6% |
| 2008 | 6.0% | +2.6% |
| 2009 | 6.2% | +2.7% |
| 2010 | 6.3% | +2.8% |
| 2011 | 6.5% | +3.0% |
| 2012 | 6.7% | +3.0% |
| 2013 | 6.9% | +3.0% |
| 2014 | 7.1% | +3.0% |
| 2015 | 7.4% | +3.1% |
| 2016 | 7.6% | +3.2% |
| 2017 | 7.8% | +3.3% |
| 2018 | 8.1% | +3.3% |
| 2019 | 8.4% | +3.4% |
| 2020 | 8.7% | +3.3% |
| 2021 | 8.9% | +3.3% |
| 2022 | 9.2% | +3.2% |
| 2023 | 9.5% | +3.1% |
| 2024 | 9.8% | +3.0% |
Rwanda compared with similar countries
- Rwanda's 9.8% is above the median for low income countries, which is 9.8%, 1.0× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Rwanda's 9.8% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 12.0%, 81% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 3.2% | 3.1% | 3.5% | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.0% | 3.5% | 4.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.5% | 4.7% | 6.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.3% | 6.3% | 8.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.2% | 8.7% | 9.8% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Rwanda
More health data for Rwanda
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.08 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.891 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 860.6 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 2,738 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 1 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 0.9441 % 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 0.065 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 0.9697 % 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 Rwanda?
- Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Rwanda was 9.8% 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 Rwanda?
- The highest recorded value was 9.8% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese recorded in Rwanda?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.1% in 1980.
- How does Rwanda rank for share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese?
- Rwanda ranks 181st out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese rising or falling in Rwanda?
- Over the last ten years it is up 37.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Rwanda 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.