Number of people who are undernourished in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Number of people who are undernourished was 1.70 million in 2023. ▼ Falling
Number of people who are undernourished in Sri Lanka, 2001–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization (http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#home).
Analysis
The most recent figure for number of people who are undernourished in Sri Lanka is 1.70 million, measured in 2023.
The figure is up 21.4% on the previous year and down 10.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of people who are undernourished in Sri Lanka peaked at 3.30 million in 2001 and was at its lowest, 700,000, in 2020.
That places Sri Lanka 53rd out of 130 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 23 years of available data.
Number of people who are undernourished in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 3.30 million | — |
| 2002 | 3.20 million | -3.0% |
| 2003 | 3.20 million | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 3.00 million | -6.2% |
| 2005 | 2.90 million | -3.3% |
| 2006 | 2.70 million | -6.9% |
| 2007 | 2.50 million | -7.4% |
| 2008 | 2.30 million | -8.0% |
| 2009 | 2.20 million | -4.3% |
| 2010 | 2.30 million | +4.5% |
| 2011 | 2.30 million | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 2.10 million | -8.7% |
| 2013 | 1.90 million | -9.5% |
| 2014 | 1.30 million | -31.6% |
| 2015 | 1.00 million | -23.1% |
| 2016 | 900,000 | -10.0% |
| 2017 | 1.10 million | +22.2% |
| 2018 | 1.20 million | +9.1% |
| 2019 | 800,000 | -33.3% |
| 2020 | 700,000 | -12.5% |
| 2021 | 1.00 million | +42.9% |
| 2022 | 1.40 million | +40.0% |
| 2023 | 1.70 million | +21.4% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 1.70 million is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 500,000, 3.4× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Number of people who are undernourished in Sri Lanka changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | +42.9% | 700,000 | 1.00 million |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 2.81 million | 2.20 million | 3.30 million | 9 |
| 2010s | 1.49 million | 800,000 | 2.30 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.20 million | 700,000 | 1.70 million | 4 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More health data for Sri Lanka
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.62 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.7332 % change on previous year (2090)
- Un projection of annual infant deaths 304 (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate -2.13 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0339 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate -2.12 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per capita 0.0353 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of people who are undernourished in Sri Lanka?
- Number of people who are undernourished in Sri Lanka was 1.70 million in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization (http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#home).
- What is the highest number of people who are undernourished recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 3.30 million in 2001.
- What is the lowest number of people who are undernourished recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 700,000 in 2020.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for number of people who are undernourished?
- Sri Lanka ranks 53rd out of 130 countries with data for 2023.
- Is number of people who are undernourished rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization (http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#home), published as part of Number of people who are undernourished. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 23 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Number of people who are undernourished shows the number of people whose habitual food consumption is insufficient to provide the dietary energy levels that are required to maintain a normal active and healthy life.