Number of people who are undernourished in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Number of people who are undernourished was 260.10 million in 2023. ▲ Rising
Number of people who are undernourished in Sub-Saharan Africa, 2001–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization (http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#home).
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 260.10 million for number of people who are undernourished in 2023. That is the highest value across all 23 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.8% on the previous year and up 55.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of people who are undernourished in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 260.10 million in 2023 and was at its lowest, 153.20 million, in 2009.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa 7th out of 42 groups with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 23 years of available data.
Number of people who are undernourished in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 165.70 million | — |
| 2002 | 166.30 million | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 166.70 million | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 164.70 million | -1.2% |
| 2005 | 161.50 million | -1.9% |
| 2006 | 157.70 million | -2.4% |
| 2007 | 155.70 million | -1.3% |
| 2008 | 153.70 million | -1.3% |
| 2009 | 153.20 million | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 153.90 million | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 156.60 million | +1.8% |
| 2012 | 160.20 million | +2.3% |
| 2013 | 167.00 million | +4.2% |
| 2014 | 172.10 million | +3.1% |
| 2015 | 180.80 million | +5.1% |
| 2016 | 189.20 million | +4.6% |
| 2017 | 196.90 million | +4.1% |
| 2018 | 204.30 million | +3.8% |
| 2019 | 218.00 million | +6.7% |
| 2020 | 234.70 million | +7.7% |
| 2021 | 246.00 million | +4.8% |
| 2022 | 250.50 million | +1.8% |
| 2023 | 260.10 million | +3.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 160.58 million | 153.20 million | 166.70 million | 9 |
| 2010s | 179.90 million | 153.90 million | 218.00 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 247.82 million | 234.70 million | 260.10 million | 4 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
More health data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Population ages 0-14, female, per capita 0.1997 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 35-39, male, per capita 0.0282 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 35-39, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, annual growth rate 1.61 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 35-39, male, annual growth rate 2.8 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 35-39, female, per capita 0.0287 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per capita 0.2041 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, female, annual growth rate 3.23 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of people who are undernourished in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Number of people who are undernourished in Sub-Saharan Africa was 260.10 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 Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 260.10 million in 2023.
- What is the lowest number of people who are undernourished recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 153.20 million in 2009.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for number of people who are undernourished?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 7th out of 42 groups with data for 2023.
- Is number of people who are undernourished rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 55.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa 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.
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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.