Overweight numbers among children under 5 years of age (thousands) in Africa (WHO region)
Africa (WHO region): Overweight numbers among children under 5 years of age (thousands) was 7,740 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
7,740
Change on year
up 9.6%
Rank
8th
of 19 groups
All-time high
7,740
in 2024
All-time low
3,797
in 1990
Years of data
35
1990–2024
Overweight numbers among children under 5 years of age (thousands) in Africa (WHO region), 1990–2024
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
Analysis
Africa (WHO region) recorded 7,740 for overweight numbers among children under 5 years of age (thousands) in 2024. That is the highest value across all 35 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 9.6% on the previous year and up 29.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, overweight numbers among children under 5 years of age (thousands) in Africa (WHO region) peaked at 7,740 in 2024 and was at its lowest, 3,797, in 1990.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Overweight numbers among children under 5 years of age (thousands) in Africa (WHO region), year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 3,797 | — |
| 1991 | 4,090 | +7.7% |
| 1992 | 4,410 | +7.8% |
| 1993 | 4,736 | +7.4% |
| 1994 | 5,051 | +6.7% |
| 1995 | 5,366 | +6.2% |
| 1996 | 5,682 | +5.9% |
| 1997 | 5,967 | +5.0% |
| 1998 | 6,204 | +4.0% |
| 1999 | 6,409 | +3.3% |
| 2000 | 6,585 | +2.8% |
| 2001 | 6,724 | +2.1% |
| 2002 | 6,831 | +1.6% |
| 2003 | 6,909 | +1.1% |
| 2004 | 6,953 | +0.6% |
| 2005 | 6,955 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 6,920 | -0.5% |
| 2007 | 6,855 | -0.9% |
| 2008 | 6,770 | -1.2% |
| 2009 | 6,661 | -1.6% |
| 2010 | 6,528 | -2.0% |
| 2011 | 6,385 | -2.2% |
| 2012 | 6,238 | -2.3% |
| 2013 | 6,088 | -2.4% |
| 2014 | 5,957 | -2.2% |
| 2015 | 5,858 | -1.7% |
| 2016 | 5,784 | -1.3% |
| 2017 | 5,740 | -0.8% |
| 2018 | 5,742 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 5,808 | +1.1% |
| 2020 | 5,956 | +2.6% |
| 2021 | 6,208 | +4.2% |
| 2022 | 6,570 | +5.8% |
| 2023 | 7,065 | +7.5% |
| 2024 | 7,740 | +9.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 5,171 | 3,797 | 6,409 | 10 |
| 2000s | 6,816 | 6,585 | 6,955 | 10 |
| 2010s | 6,013 | 5,740 | 6,528 | 10 |
| 2020s | 6,708 | 5,956 | 7,740 | 5 |
Countries ranked near Africa (WHO region)
- 5 Egypt 1,322 compare
- 6 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 822.6 compare
- 7 Mexico 760 compare
- 8 South Africa 757 compare
- 9 Viet Nam 741.6 compare
- 10 Pakistan 662 compare
- 11 Russian Federation 656.8 compare
More health data for Africa (WHO region)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 1,654 (2025)
- Measles - number of reported cases, gaps filled 179,400 (2025)
- Diphtheria - number of reported cases, gaps filled 20,261 (2025)
- Total tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 20,578 (2025)
- Pertussis - number of reported cases, gaps filled 12,202 (2025)
- Number of under-five deaths, annual growth rate -1.43 % change on previous year (2024)
- Number of neonatal deaths, annual growth rate -0.0365 % change on previous year (2024)
- Number of infant deaths, annual growth rate -0.8695 % change on previous year (2024)
- Measles - number of reported cases, annual growth rate -8.02 % change on previous year (2025)
- Pertussis - number of reported cases, annual growth rate 160.28 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is overweight numbers among children under 5 years of age (thousands) in Africa (WHO region)?
- Overweight numbers among children under 5 years of age (thousands) in Africa (WHO region) was 7,740 in 2024, according to World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
- What is the highest overweight numbers among children under 5 years of age (thousands) recorded in Africa (WHO region)?
- The highest recorded value was 7,740 in 2024.
- What is the lowest overweight numbers among children under 5 years of age (thousands) recorded in Africa (WHO region)?
- The lowest recorded value was 3,797 in 1990.
- How does Africa (WHO region) rank for overweight numbers among children under 5 years of age (thousands)?
- Africa (WHO region) ranks 8th out of 19 groups with data for 2024.
- Is overweight numbers among children under 5 years of age (thousands) rising or falling in Africa (WHO region)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 29.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Africa (WHO region) data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory, published as part of Overweight numbers among children under 5 years of age (thousands), model-based estimates. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO).