Prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income): Prevalence of overweight, weight for height was 3.8% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), 2000–2024
Source: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Analysis
The most recent figure for prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) is 3.8%, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 8.6% on the previous year and up 14.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) peaked at 5.4% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 3.0%, in 2019.
Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) ranks 36th of 45 groups on this measure, 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 in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 5.4% | — |
| 2001 | 5.4% | -0.4% |
| 2002 | 5.3% | -1.0% |
| 2003 | 5.2% | -1.5% |
| 2004 | 5.1% | -1.9% |
| 2005 | 5.0% | -2.8% |
| 2006 | 4.8% | -3.4% |
| 2007 | 4.6% | -3.9% |
| 2008 | 4.4% | -4.2% |
| 2009 | 4.2% | -4.9% |
| 2010 | 4.1% | -4.2% |
| 2011 | 3.8% | -5.0% |
| 2012 | 3.7% | -4.6% |
| 2013 | 3.5% | -4.2% |
| 2014 | 3.4% | -4.4% |
| 2015 | 3.3% | -3.1% |
| 2016 | 3.2% | -2.8% |
| 2017 | 3.1% | -2.3% |
| 2018 | 3.0% | -1.9% |
| 2019 | 3.0% | -0.3% |
| 2020 | 3.1% | +2.0% |
| 2021 | 3.2% | +3.3% |
| 2022 | 3.3% | +4.8% |
| 2023 | 3.5% | +5.7% |
| 2024 | 3.8% | +8.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 5.0% | 4.2% | 5.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.4% | 3.0% | 4.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.4% | 3.1% | 3.8% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
More health data for Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
- Population ages 50-54, male, annual growth rate 3.53 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, male, annual growth rate 3.59 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, female, per capita 0.0125 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 10-14, male, per capita 0.0617 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, female, annual growth rate 3.3 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 50-54, male, per capita 0.0147 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 50-54, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 15-19, female, annual growth rate 2.62 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 15-19, female, per capita 0.054 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- Prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) was 3.8% 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 Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- The highest recorded value was 5.4% in 2000.
- What is the lowest prevalence of overweight, weight for height recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.0% in 2019.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) rank for prevalence of overweight, weight for height?
- Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) ranks 36th out of 45 groups with data for 2024.
- Is prevalence of overweight, weight for height rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 14.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) 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.