Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) was 5.4% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Sierra Leone, 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 Sierra Leone is 5.4%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 17.4% on the previous year and up 116.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Sierra Leone peaked at 5.4% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 2.5%, in 2013.
Sierra Leone ranks 86th of 162 countries on this measure, 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 Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 4.9% | — |
| 2001 | 4.6% | -6.1% |
| 2002 | 4.4% | -4.3% |
| 2003 | 4.1% | -6.8% |
| 2004 | 3.9% | -4.9% |
| 2005 | 3.7% | -5.1% |
| 2006 | 3.4% | -8.1% |
| 2007 | 3.2% | -5.9% |
| 2008 | 3.0% | -6.3% |
| 2009 | 2.9% | -3.3% |
| 2010 | 2.7% | -6.9% |
| 2011 | 2.6% | -3.7% |
| 2012 | 2.6% | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 2.5% | -3.8% |
| 2014 | 2.5% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 2.5% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 2.5% | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 2.6% | +4.0% |
| 2018 | 2.7% | +3.8% |
| 2019 | 2.9% | +7.4% |
| 2020 | 3.2% | +10.3% |
| 2021 | 3.5% | +9.4% |
| 2022 | 4.0% | +14.3% |
| 2023 | 4.6% | +15.0% |
| 2024 | 5.4% | +17.4% |
Sierra Leone compared with similar countries
- Sierra Leone's 5.4% is above the median for low income countries, which is 3.3%, 1.6× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Sierra Leone's 5.4% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 4.2%, 1.3× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3.8% | 2.9% | 4.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.6% | 2.5% | 2.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.1% | 3.2% | 5.4% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
More health data for Sierra Leone
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -2.34 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.773 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,199 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 4,209 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 38 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 0.6447 % 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 0.0663 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 0.6611 % 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 Sierra Leone?
- Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Sierra Leone was 5.4% 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 Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 5.4% in 2024.
- What is the lowest overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.5% in 2013.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%)?
- Sierra Leone ranks 86th out of 162 countries with data for 2024.
- Is overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is up 116.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sierra Leone 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).