Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Malawi
Malawi: Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) was 4.4% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
4.4%
Change on year
up 12.8%
World rank
107th
of 162 countries
All-time high
12.0%
in 2000
All-time low
3.1%
in 2019
Years of data
25
2000–2024
Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Malawi, 2000–2024
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
Analysis
In 2024, overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Malawi stood at 4.4%.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 12.8% on the previous year and up 10.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Malawi peaked at 12.0% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 3.1%, in 2019.
That places Malawi 107th out of 162 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
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 Malawi, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 12.0% | — |
| 2001 | 11.8% | -1.7% |
| 2002 | 11.4% | -3.4% |
| 2003 | 10.9% | -4.4% |
| 2004 | 10.3% | -5.5% |
| 2005 | 9.6% | -6.8% |
| 2006 | 8.8% | -8.3% |
| 2007 | 8.0% | -9.1% |
| 2008 | 7.3% | -8.8% |
| 2009 | 6.6% | -9.6% |
| 2010 | 5.9% | -10.6% |
| 2011 | 5.3% | -10.2% |
| 2012 | 4.8% | -9.4% |
| 2013 | 4.4% | -8.3% |
| 2014 | 4.0% | -9.1% |
| 2015 | 3.7% | -7.5% |
| 2016 | 3.5% | -5.4% |
| 2017 | 3.3% | -5.7% |
| 2018 | 3.2% | -3.0% |
| 2019 | 3.1% | -3.1% |
| 2020 | 3.1% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 3.3% | +6.5% |
| 2022 | 3.5% | +6.1% |
| 2023 | 3.9% | +11.4% |
| 2024 | 4.4% | +12.8% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 4.4% is above the median for low income countries, which is 3.3%, 1.3× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 4.4% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 4.2%, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 9.7% | 6.6% | 12.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.1% | 3.1% | 5.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.6% | 3.1% | 4.4% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
- 106 Lebanon 4.5% compare
- 107 Afghanistan 4.4% compare
- 107 Mozambique 4.4% compare
- 107 Guinea 4.4% compare
More health data for Malawi
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -0.8368 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.9312 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 856.3 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 6,399 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 1.61 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0714 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 1.63 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Malawi?
- Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Malawi was 4.4% 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 Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 12.0% in 2000.
- What is the lowest overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.1% in 2019.
- How does Malawi rank for overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%)?
- Malawi ranks 107th out of 162 countries with data for 2024.
- Is overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.0%. 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 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).