Prevalence of overweight, weight for height, female in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Prevalence of overweight, weight for height, female was 3.6% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Prevalence of overweight, weight for height, female in Sub-Saharan Africa, 2000–2024
Source: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 3.6% for prevalence of overweight, weight for height, female in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 8.5% on the previous year and up 14.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of overweight, weight for height, female in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 5.0% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 2.8%, in 2018.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa 36th out of 45 groups 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.
Prevalence of overweight, weight for height, female in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 5.0% | — |
| 2001 | 5.0% | -0.2% |
| 2002 | 5.0% | -1.0% |
| 2003 | 4.9% | -1.6% |
| 2004 | 4.8% | -2.0% |
| 2005 | 4.7% | -2.9% |
| 2006 | 4.5% | -3.4% |
| 2007 | 4.3% | -3.8% |
| 2008 | 4.1% | -4.2% |
| 2009 | 4.0% | -4.6% |
| 2010 | 3.8% | -4.6% |
| 2011 | 3.6% | -4.8% |
| 2012 | 3.4% | -4.7% |
| 2013 | 3.3% | -4.4% |
| 2014 | 3.1% | -4.3% |
| 2015 | 3.0% | -3.5% |
| 2016 | 2.9% | -3.0% |
| 2017 | 2.9% | -2.0% |
| 2018 | 2.8% | -1.4% |
| 2019 | 2.8% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 2.9% | +1.4% |
| 2021 | 3.0% | +3.1% |
| 2022 | 3.1% | +4.7% |
| 2023 | 3.3% | +6.5% |
| 2024 | 3.6% | +8.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 4.6% | 4.0% | 5.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.2% | 2.8% | 3.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.2% | 2.9% | 3.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
More health data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Population ages 15-64, male, annual growth rate 3.04 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, total, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, total, per capita 0.4038 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, female, annual growth rate 2.96 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, female, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, female, per capita 0.2837 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, male, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, total, annual growth rate 3 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, male, per capita 0.2801 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is prevalence of overweight, weight for height, female in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Prevalence of overweight, weight for height, female in Sub-Saharan Africa was 3.6% in 2024, according to Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
- What is the highest prevalence of overweight, weight for height, female recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 5.0% in 2000.
- What is the lowest prevalence of overweight, weight for height, female recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.8% in 2018.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for prevalence of overweight, weight for height, female?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 36th out of 45 groups with data for 2024.
- Is prevalence of overweight, weight for height, female rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 14.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), published as part of Prevalence of overweight, weight for height, female (modeled estimate, % of children under 5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Prevalence of overweight, female, is the percentage of girls under age 5 whose weight for height is more than two standard deviations above the median for the international reference population of the corresponding age as established by the WHO's 2006 Child Growth Standards.