Prevalence of stunting, height for age, male in Maldives

Maldives: Prevalence of stunting, height for age, male was 16.3% in 2017. ▼ Falling

Latest (2017)
16.3%
World rank
53rd
of 83 countries
All-time high
53.5%
in 1997
All-time low
16.3%
in 2017
Years of data
5
1994–2017

Prevalence of stunting, height for age, male in Maldives, 1994–2017

203040501994200520171994: 36.6 % of children under 51997: 53.5 % of children under 52001: 32.6 % of children under 52009: 20.4 % of children under 52017: 16.3 % of children under 5

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

In 2017, prevalence of stunting, height for age, male in Maldives stood at 16.3%. That is the lowest value across all 5 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 20.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, prevalence of stunting, height for age, male in Maldives peaked at 53.5% in 1997 and was at its lowest, 16.3%, in 2017.

Maldives ranks 53rd of 83 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

Prevalence of stunting, height for age, male in Maldives, year by year

Annual values for Prevalence of stunting, height for age, male (% of children under 5) in Maldives, 1994 to 2017.
Year % of children under 5 Change
1994 36.6%
1997 53.5% +46.2%
2001 32.6% -39.1%
2009 20.4% -37.4%
2017 16.3% -20.1%

Maldives compared with similar countries

  • Maldives's 16.3% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 11.6%, 1.4× the median. (23 countries reporting)
  • Maldives's 16.3% is below the median for South Asia, which is 23.8%, 68% of the median. (5 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 45.0% 36.6% 53.5% 2
2000s 26.5% 20.4% 32.6% 2
2010s 16.3% 16.3% 16.3% 1

Countries ranked near Maldives

  1. 51 Nicaragua 18.2% compare
  2. 52 Sri Lanka 17.9% compare
  3. 54 Bolivia 16.1% compare
  4. 55 Tajikistan 15.1% compare
  5. 56 Kyrgyzstan 15.0% compare

See the full ranking of 83 places →

More health data for Maldives

All data for Maldives →

Frequently asked questions

What is prevalence of stunting, height for age, male in Maldives?
Prevalence of stunting, height for age, male in Maldives was 16.3% in 2017, 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 stunting, height for age, male recorded in Maldives?
The highest recorded value was 53.5% in 1997.
What is the lowest prevalence of stunting, height for age, male recorded in Maldives?
The lowest recorded value was 16.3% in 2017.
How does Maldives rank for prevalence of stunting, height for age, male?
Maldives ranks 53rd out of 83 countries with data for 2017.
Is prevalence of stunting, height for age, male rising or falling in Maldives?
Over the last ten years it is down 20.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Maldives 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 stunting, height for age, male (% of children under 5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Prevalence of stunting, height for age, male in Maldives. Statizoid, drawing on 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'. Retrieved 17 September 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/prevalence-of-stunting-height-for-age-male-percent-of-children-under-5/maldives/

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About this data

Indicator
Prevalence of stunting, height for age, male (% of children under 5)
Unit
% of children under 5
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'
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
83 places, 730 data points, 1986–2024
Last refreshed

Prevalence of stunting, male, is the percentage of boys under age 5 whose height for age is more than two standard deviations below the median for the international reference population ages 0-59 months. For children up to two years old height is measured by recumbent length. For older children height is measured by stature while standing. The data are based on the WHO's 2006 Child Growth Standards.