Low birth weight prevalence in Malawi
Malawi: Low birth weight prevalence was 15.6% in 2020. ▼ Falling
Latest (2020)
15.6%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
26th
of 157 countries
All-time high
16.5%
in 2000
All-time low
15.6%
in 2019
Years of data
21
2000–2020
Low birth weight prevalence in Malawi, 2000–2020
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
Analysis
In 2020, low birth weight prevalence in Malawi stood at 15.6%. That is the lowest value across all 21 years on record.
The figure is down 1.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, low birth weight prevalence in Malawi peaked at 16.5% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 15.6%, in 2019.
That places Malawi 26th out of 157 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 21 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 16.2% | 15.9% | 16.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 15.8% | 15.6% | 15.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 15.6% | 15.6% | 15.6% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
- 24 Saint Lucia 16.3% compare
- 24 Trinidad and Tobago 16.3% compare
- 26 Namibia 15.6% compare
- 28 Angola 15.5% compare
- 29 Antigua and Barbuda 15.4% compare
- 29 Bahamas 15.4% compare
More health data for Malawi
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates 856.3 (2090)
- Un projection of annual infant deaths 6,399 (2100)
- Deaths in armed conflicts by country 0 (2026)
- Deaths in armed conflicts by region 0 (2026)
- Age population, age 25, male, interpolated 193,780 (2025)
- Age population, age 25, female, interpolated 198,476 (2025)
- Age population, age 24, male, interpolated 200,046 (2025)
- Age population, age 24, female, interpolated 204,753 (2025)
- Age population, age 23, male, interpolated 207,829 (2025)
- Age population, age 23, female, interpolated 212,512 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is low birth weight prevalence in Malawi?
- Low birth weight prevalence in Malawi was 15.6% in 2020, according to World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
- What is the highest low birth weight prevalence recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 16.5% in 2000.
- What is the lowest low birth weight prevalence recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 15.6% in 2019.
- How does Malawi rank for low birth weight prevalence?
- Malawi ranks 26th out of 157 countries with data for 2020.
- Is low birth weight prevalence rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory, published as part of Low birth weight prevalence (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 21 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO).