Prevalence of stunting, height for age in Liberia
Liberia: Prevalence of stunting, height for age was 26.9% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Prevalence of stunting, height for age in Liberia, 2000–2024
Source: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Analysis
In 2024, prevalence of stunting, height for age in Liberia stood at 26.9%.
That represents a change of up 1.1% on the previous year and down 17.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of stunting, height for age in Liberia peaked at 45.0% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 26.6%, in 2023.
Liberia ranks 34th of 162 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Prevalence of stunting, height for age in Liberia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 45.0% | — |
| 2001 | 44.1% | -2.0% |
| 2002 | 43.1% | -2.3% |
| 2003 | 42.5% | -1.4% |
| 2004 | 41.9% | -1.4% |
| 2005 | 41.2% | -1.7% |
| 2006 | 40.5% | -1.7% |
| 2007 | 39.6% | -2.2% |
| 2008 | 38.6% | -2.5% |
| 2009 | 37.6% | -2.6% |
| 2010 | 36.5% | -2.9% |
| 2011 | 35.5% | -2.7% |
| 2012 | 34.6% | -2.5% |
| 2013 | 33.6% | -2.9% |
| 2014 | 32.7% | -2.7% |
| 2015 | 32.2% | -1.5% |
| 2016 | 31.3% | -2.8% |
| 2017 | 30.4% | -2.9% |
| 2018 | 29.4% | -3.3% |
| 2019 | 28.4% | -3.4% |
| 2020 | 27.3% | -3.9% |
| 2021 | 26.8% | -1.8% |
| 2022 | 26.7% | -0.4% |
| 2023 | 26.6% | -0.4% |
| 2024 | 26.9% | +1.1% |
Liberia compared with similar countries
- Liberia's 26.9% is below the median for low income countries, which is 31.5%, 85% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Liberia's 26.9% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 24.8%, 1.1× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 41.4% | 37.6% | 45.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 32.5% | 28.4% | 36.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 26.9% | 26.6% | 27.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Liberia
- 31 Guinea-Bissau 28.3% compare
- 32 Philippines 27.7% compare
- 33 Cameroon 27.2% compare
- 35 Guinea 26.6% compare
- 36 Nepal 26.0% compare
- 37 Sierra Leone 25.2% compare
More health data for Liberia
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.57 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.7528 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,097 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 3,457 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 7 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 1.13 % 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 0.068 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 1.13 % 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 stunting, height for age in Liberia?
- Prevalence of stunting, height for age in Liberia was 26.9% in 2024, according to Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
- What is the highest prevalence of stunting, height for age recorded in Liberia?
- The highest recorded value was 45.0% in 2000.
- What is the lowest prevalence of stunting, height for age recorded in Liberia?
- The lowest recorded value was 26.6% in 2023.
- How does Liberia rank for prevalence of stunting, height for age?
- Liberia ranks 34th out of 162 countries with data for 2024.
- Is prevalence of stunting, height for age rising or falling in Liberia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 17.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Liberia data come from?
- The figures come from Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), published as part of Prevalence of stunting, height for age (modeled estimate, % of children under 5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Prevalence of stunting is the percentage of children 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.