Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Zambia
Zambia: Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese was 12.5% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Zambia, 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 Zambia stood at 12.5%. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of up 4.2% on the previous year and up 49.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Zambia peaked at 12.5% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 3.1%, in 1980.
Zambia ranks 163rd 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 Zambia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 3.1% | — |
| 1981 | 3.1% | +1.2% |
| 1982 | 3.1% | +1.4% |
| 1983 | 3.2% | +1.6% |
| 1984 | 3.2% | +1.7% |
| 1985 | 3.3% | +1.9% |
| 1986 | 3.4% | +2.1% |
| 1987 | 3.5% | +2.2% |
| 1988 | 3.5% | +2.4% |
| 1989 | 3.6% | +2.5% |
| 1990 | 3.7% | +2.7% |
| 1991 | 3.8% | +2.8% |
| 1992 | 3.9% | +2.9% |
| 1993 | 4.1% | +2.9% |
| 1994 | 4.2% | +3.0% |
| 1995 | 4.3% | +3.1% |
| 1996 | 4.4% | +3.2% |
| 1997 | 4.6% | +3.3% |
| 1998 | 4.7% | +3.4% |
| 1999 | 4.9% | +3.5% |
| 2000 | 5.1% | +3.6% |
| 2001 | 5.3% | +3.7% |
| 2002 | 5.5% | +3.8% |
| 2003 | 5.7% | +3.8% |
| 2004 | 5.9% | +3.8% |
| 2005 | 6.1% | +3.7% |
| 2006 | 6.3% | +3.6% |
| 2007 | 6.6% | +3.6% |
| 2008 | 6.8% | +3.5% |
| 2009 | 7.0% | +3.4% |
| 2010 | 7.3% | +3.4% |
| 2011 | 7.5% | +3.5% |
| 2012 | 7.8% | +3.6% |
| 2013 | 8.1% | +3.6% |
| 2014 | 8.4% | +3.7% |
| 2015 | 8.7% | +3.8% |
| 2016 | 9.0% | +4.0% |
| 2017 | 9.4% | +4.1% |
| 2018 | 9.8% | +4.1% |
| 2019 | 10.2% | +4.1% |
| 2020 | 10.6% | +4.1% |
| 2021 | 11.1% | +4.2% |
| 2022 | 11.5% | +4.2% |
| 2023 | 12.0% | +4.2% |
| 2024 | 12.5% | +4.2% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 12.5% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 14.1%, 89% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 12.5% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 12.0%, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 3.3% | 3.1% | 3.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.3% | 3.7% | 4.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 6.0% | 5.1% | 7.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 8.6% | 7.3% | 10.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 11.6% | 10.6% | 12.5% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
More health data for Zambia
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.09 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.7971 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 809.3 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 8,894 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 1.68 % 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 0.0743 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 1.69 % 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 Zambia?
- Share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese in Zambia was 12.5% 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 Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 12.5% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.1% in 1980.
- How does Zambia rank for share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese?
- Zambia ranks 163rd out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 49.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Zambia 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.