Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Ghana
Ghana: Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) was 1.8% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Ghana, 2000–2024
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
Analysis
The most recent figure for overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Ghana is 1.8%, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of down 25.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Ghana peaked at 3.4% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 1.8%, in 2022.
That places Ghana 153rd out of 162 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Ghana, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 3.4% | — |
| 2001 | 3.4% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 3.4% | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 3.4% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 3.3% | -2.9% |
| 2005 | 3.3% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 3.2% | -3.0% |
| 2007 | 3.1% | -3.1% |
| 2008 | 3.0% | -3.2% |
| 2009 | 2.9% | -3.3% |
| 2010 | 2.8% | -3.4% |
| 2011 | 2.7% | -3.6% |
| 2012 | 2.6% | -3.7% |
| 2013 | 2.5% | -3.8% |
| 2014 | 2.4% | -4.0% |
| 2015 | 2.3% | -4.2% |
| 2016 | 2.2% | -4.3% |
| 2017 | 2.1% | -4.5% |
| 2018 | 2.0% | -4.8% |
| 2019 | 1.9% | -5.0% |
| 2020 | 1.9% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 1.9% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 1.8% | -5.3% |
| 2023 | 1.8% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 1.8% | +0.0% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 1.8% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 4.7%, 39% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 1.8% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 4.2%, 42% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3.2% | 2.9% | 3.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.4% | 1.9% | 2.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.8% | 1.8% | 1.9% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
More health data for Ghana
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.37 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.6224 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 986.1 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 8,361 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 0.5623 % 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 0.06 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 0.5816 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Ghana?
- Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Ghana was 1.8% in 2024, according to World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
- What is the highest overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 3.4% in 2000.
- What is the lowest overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.8% in 2022.
- How does Ghana rank for overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%)?
- Ghana ranks 153rd out of 162 countries with data for 2024.
- Is overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is down 25.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory, published as part of Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (% weight-for-height >+2 SD), model-based estimates. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO).