Prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Kenya
Kenya: Prevalence of overweight, weight for height was 4.3% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Kenya, 2000–2024
Source: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Analysis
Kenya recorded 4.3% for prevalence of overweight, weight for height in 2024.
That represents a change of up 7.5% on the previous year and down 4.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Kenya peaked at 7.1% in 2001 and was at its lowest, 3.7%, in 2019.
Kenya ranks 111th of 163 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.
Prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Kenya, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 7.0% | — |
| 2001 | 7.1% | +1.4% |
| 2002 | 7.1% | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 7.1% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 7.1% | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 6.9% | -2.8% |
| 2006 | 6.7% | -2.9% |
| 2007 | 6.5% | -3.0% |
| 2008 | 6.2% | -4.6% |
| 2009 | 5.9% | -4.8% |
| 2010 | 5.6% | -5.1% |
| 2011 | 5.3% | -5.4% |
| 2012 | 5.0% | -5.7% |
| 2013 | 4.7% | -6.0% |
| 2014 | 4.5% | -4.3% |
| 2015 | 4.2% | -6.7% |
| 2016 | 4.0% | -4.8% |
| 2017 | 3.9% | -2.5% |
| 2018 | 3.8% | -2.6% |
| 2019 | 3.7% | -2.6% |
| 2020 | 3.7% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 3.7% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 3.8% | +2.7% |
| 2023 | 4.0% | +5.3% |
| 2024 | 4.3% | +7.5% |
Kenya compared with similar countries
- Kenya's 4.3% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 4.7%, 92% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Kenya's 4.3% 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 | 6.8% | 5.9% | 7.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.5% | 3.7% | 5.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.9% | 3.7% | 4.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
- 111 South Sudan 4.3% compare
- 113 Azerbaijan 4.2% compare
- 113 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 4.2% compare
- 113 Honduras 4.2% compare
- 113 Uganda 4.2% compare
More health data for Kenya
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.44 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.6026 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,119 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 16,059 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 89 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 1.28 % 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 0.0621 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 1.28 % 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 prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Kenya?
- Prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Kenya was 4.3% in 2024, according to Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
- What is the highest prevalence of overweight, weight for height recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 7.1% in 2001.
- What is the lowest prevalence of overweight, weight for height recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.7% in 2019.
- How does Kenya rank for prevalence of overweight, weight for height?
- Kenya ranks 111th out of 163 countries with data for 2024.
- Is prevalence of overweight, weight for height rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Kenya 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 (modeled estimate, % of children under 5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Prevalence of overweight children is the percentage of children 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.