Prevalence of overweight in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries): Prevalence of overweight was 29.9% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Prevalence of overweight in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries), 1990–2022
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/). Measured in % of adults.
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) recorded 29.9% for prevalence of overweight in 2022. That is the highest value across all 33 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.9% on the previous year and up 19.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of overweight in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) peaked at 29.9% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 13.0%, in 1990.
Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) ranks 35th of 43 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Prevalence of overweight in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries), year by year
| Year | % of adults | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 13.0% | — |
| 1991 | 13.5% | +3.5% |
| 1992 | 13.9% | +3.3% |
| 1993 | 14.4% | +3.6% |
| 1994 | 14.9% | +3.4% |
| 1995 | 15.4% | +3.1% |
| 1996 | 15.9% | +3.3% |
| 1997 | 16.4% | +3.4% |
| 1998 | 17.0% | +3.5% |
| 1999 | 17.6% | +3.5% |
| 2000 | 18.2% | +3.5% |
| 2001 | 18.9% | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 19.5% | +3.4% |
| 2003 | 20.2% | +3.3% |
| 2004 | 20.8% | +3.2% |
| 2005 | 21.4% | +3.0% |
| 2006 | 22.0% | +2.8% |
| 2007 | 22.6% | +2.6% |
| 2008 | 23.2% | +2.4% |
| 2009 | 23.7% | +2.2% |
| 2010 | 24.1% | +2.0% |
| 2011 | 24.6% | +1.8% |
| 2012 | 25.0% | +1.7% |
| 2013 | 25.4% | +1.7% |
| 2014 | 25.9% | +1.7% |
| 2015 | 26.3% | +1.8% |
| 2016 | 26.8% | +1.7% |
| 2017 | 27.2% | +1.7% |
| 2018 | 27.8% | +1.8% |
| 2019 | 28.3% | +1.8% |
| 2020 | 28.8% | +1.9% |
| 2021 | 29.3% | +1.9% |
| 2022 | 29.9% | +1.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 15.2% | 13.0% | 17.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 21.0% | 18.2% | 23.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 26.1% | 24.1% | 28.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 29.3% | 28.8% | 29.9% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
More health data for Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
- Population ages 35-39, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, male, annual growth rate 3.14 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, female, per capita 0.024 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, female, annual growth rate 3.23 % change on previous year (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 35-39, male, annual growth rate 2.8 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 35-39, female, per capita 0.0287 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 30-34, female, annual growth rate 2.69 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is prevalence of overweight in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- Prevalence of overweight in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) was 29.9% in 2022, according to World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/).
- What is the highest prevalence of overweight recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- The highest recorded value was 29.9% in 2022.
- What is the lowest prevalence of overweight recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.0% in 1990.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) rank for prevalence of overweight?
- Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) ranks 35th out of 43 groups with data for 2022.
- Is prevalence of overweight rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 19.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/), published as part of Prevalence of overweight (% of adults). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Prevalence of overweight adults is the percentage of adults ages 18 and over whose Body Mass Index (BMI) is more than 25 kg/m2. Body Mass Index (BMI) is a simple index of weight-for-height, or the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters.