Prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height in Niger
Niger: Prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height was 2.1% in 2022. ▼ Falling
Prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height in Niger, 1992–2022
Source: UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children'. Measured in % of children under 5.
Analysis
The most recent figure for prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height in Niger is 2.1%, measured in 2022. That is the lowest value across all 19 years on record.
That represents a change of down 8.7% on the previous year and down 22.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height in Niger peaked at 7.1% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 2.1%, in 2016.
That places Niger 14th out of 85 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 19 years of available data.
Prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height in Niger, year by year
| Year | % of children under 5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 6.7% | — |
| 1998 | 7.1% | +6.0% |
| 2000 | 6.1% | -14.1% |
| 2006 | 3.1% | -49.2% |
| 2007 | 3.0% | -3.2% |
| 2008 | 3.1% | +3.3% |
| 2009 | 2.3% | -25.8% |
| 2010 | 3.6% | +56.5% |
| 2011 | 2.2% | -38.9% |
| 2012 | 2.7% | +22.7% |
| 2013 | 2.5% | -7.4% |
| 2014 | 2.7% | +8.0% |
| 2015 | 3.5% | +29.6% |
| 2016 | 2.1% | -40.0% |
| 2018 | 3.0% | +42.9% |
| 2019 | 2.4% | -20.0% |
| 2020 | 2.5% | +4.2% |
| 2021 | 2.3% | -8.0% |
| 2022 | 2.1% | -8.7% |
Niger compared with similar countries
- Niger's 2.1% is above the median for low income countries, which is 1.3%, 1.6× the median. (18 countries reporting)
- Niger's 2.1% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1.2%, 1.7× the median. (32 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 6.9% | 6.7% | 7.1% | 2 |
| 2000s | 3.5% | 2.3% | 6.1% | 5 |
| 2010s | 2.7% | 2.1% | 3.6% | 9 |
| 2020s | 2.3% | 2.1% | 2.5% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Niger
More health data for Niger
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.58 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 1.35 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 887.5 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 22,995 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 15 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 2.54 % 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 0.0865 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 2.53 % 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 prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height in Niger?
- Prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height in Niger was 2.1% in 2022, according to UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children'.
- What is the highest prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height recorded in Niger?
- The highest recorded value was 7.1% in 1998.
- What is the lowest prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height recorded in Niger?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.1% in 2016.
- How does Niger rank for prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height?
- Niger ranks 14th out of 85 countries with data for 2022.
- Is prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height rising or falling in Niger?
- Over the last ten years it is down 22.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Niger data come from?
- The figures come from UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children', published as part of Prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height (% of children under 5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Prevalence of severe wasting is the proportion of children under age 5 whose weight for height is more than three standard deviations below the median for the international reference population ages 0-59 months.