Children aged <5 years wasted for age (%) by country

Countries reporting
77
Highest
21.5%
Djibouti
Lowest
0.3%
Chile
Median
5.7%
Years covered
50
1966–2015
Data points
594

What the numbers show

Children aged <5 years wasted for age (%) is currently reported for 77 countries. The highest value is 21.5% in Djibouti; the lowest is 0.3% in Chile.

The median across all reporting countries is 5.7%, and the mean is 6.7%.

The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 72.

Over the past decade 25 countries rose and 52 fell. The largest increase was in Syrian Arab Republic (up 134.7%), and the largest decrease in Morocco (down 78.7%).

Children aged <5 years wasted for age: full country ranking

#Country LatestYear 10-year changeTrend
1 Djibouti 21.5% 2012 up 10.8% rising
2 Sri Lanka 21.4% 2012 up 38.1% rising
3 India 20.0% 2006 up 3.6% flat
4 Niger 18.7% 2012 up 15.4% falling
5 Sudan 16.3% 2014 down 22.4% flat
6 Yemen 16.2% 2013 up 6.6% falling
7 Burkina Faso 15.4% 2010 down 1.9% flat
8 Madagascar 15.2% 2004 down 7.3% rising
9 Bangladesh 14.3% 2014 down 2.1% falling
10 Indonesia 13.5% 2013 down 6.2% rising
11 Chad 13.0% 2015 down 19.3% falling
12 Mauritania 11.6% 2012 down 24.2% falling
13 Syrian Arab Republic 11.5% 2009 up 134.7% rising
14 Nepal 11.3% 2014 down 11.0% falling
15 Timor-Leste 11.0% 2013 down 23.1% flat
16 Pakistan 10.5% 2013 down 26.1% falling
17 Maldives 10.2% 2009 down 53.2% rising
18 Tajikistan 9.9% 2012 up 62.3% falling
19 Cambodia 9.6% 2014 up 15.7% falling
20 Egypt 9.5% 2014 up 82.7% rising
21 Sierra Leone 9.4% 2013 down 7.8% falling
22 Ethiopia 8.7% 2014 down 29.3% falling
23 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 8.1% 2014 down 61.2% falling
24 Nigeria 7.9% 2014 down 29.5% falling
24 Philippines 7.9% 2014 up 31.7% falling
24 Myanmar 7.9% 2010 down 26.2% falling
27 Côte d'Ivoire 7.6% 2012 up 10.1% falling
28 Oman 7.5% 2014 up 2.7% falling
29 Iraq 7.4% 2011 up 12.1% rising
30 Togo 6.7% 2014 down 58.9% volatile
30 Thailand 6.7% 2012 up 42.6% falling
32 Tanzania, United Republic of 6.6% 2011 up 17.9% falling
33 Guyana 6.4% 2014 down 22.9% falling
33 Lao People's Democratic Republic 6.4% 2012 down 63.4% falling
35 Zambia 6.3% 2014 up 1.6% flat
36 Mozambique 6.1% 2011 down 10.3% falling
37 Guinea-Bissau 6.0% 2014 down 32.6% falling
38 Viet Nam 5.7% 2013 down 47.7% falling
38 Senegal 5.7% 2014 down 34.5% rising
40 Guinea 5.6% 2012 down 45.6% falling
41 Haiti 5.2% 2012 down 7.1% falling
41 Cameroon 5.2% 2014 down 16.1% flat
43 Uganda 4.8% 2011 down 4.0% rising
44 Ghana 4.7% 2014 down 44.0% falling
45 Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of 4.1% 2009 up 2.5% rising
45 Algeria 4.1% 2013 down 57.3% falling
47 Sao Tome and Principe 4.0% 2014 down 58.3% rising
47 Democratic People’s Republic of Korea 4.0% 2012 down 54.0% volatile
47 Kenya 4.0% 2014 down 35.5% falling
50 Malawi 3.8% 2014 down 39.7% falling
51 Romania 3.5% 2002 up 6.1% rising
52 Zimbabwe 3.3% 2014 down 54.8% falling
53 Azerbaijan 3.1% 2013 down 3.1% falling
54 Rwanda 3.0% 2011 down 65.5% falling
54 Jamaica 3.0% 2012 up 30.4% falling
56 Kyrgyzstan 2.8% 2014 down 17.6% volatile
56 Lesotho 2.8% 2014 down 50.0% volatile
56 Tunisia 2.8% 2012 down 3.4% rising
59 Jordan 2.4% 2012 down 4.0% falling
59 Dominican Republic 2.4% 2013 up 9.1% flat
59 Kuwait 2.4% 2014 down 29.4% volatile
62 Morocco 2.3% 2011 down 78.7% volatile
62 China 2.3% 2010 down 8.0% falling
64 Eswatini 2.0% 2014 down 31.0% rising
64 El Salvador 2.0% 2014 up 53.8% flat
66 Türkiye 1.7% 2014 up 54.5% volatile
67 Mexico 1.6% 2012 down 30.4% volatile
68 Nicaragua 1.5% 2007 down 59.5% volatile
69 Honduras 1.4% 2012 up 16.7% falling
69 Bolivia, Plurinational State of 1.4% 2008 down 12.5% volatile
71 Uruguay 1.1% 2011 down 54.2% falling
72 Mongolia 1.0% 2013 up 66.7% volatile
73 Colombia 0.9% 2010 down 18.2% volatile
74 Guatemala 0.7% 2015 down 61.1% falling
75 Peru 0.6% 2014 down 40.0% falling
76 United States of America 0.5% 2012 up 25.0% volatile
77 Chile 0.3% 2014 down 40.0% falling

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Children aged <5 years wasted for age by country. Statizoid, drawing on World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory. Retrieved 22 August 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/children-aged-5-years-wasted-for-age-percent/

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About this data

Indicator
Children aged <5 years wasted for age (%)
Source
World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO)
Coverage
77 places, 594 data points, 1966–2015
Last refreshed