Prevalence of stunting, height for age in Madagascar
Madagascar: Prevalence of stunting, height for age was 38.4% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Prevalence of stunting, height for age in Madagascar, 2000–2024
Source: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Analysis
Madagascar recorded 38.4% for prevalence of stunting, height for age in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.5% on the previous year and down 17.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of stunting, height for age in Madagascar peaked at 56.1% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 38.4%, in 2024.
That places Madagascar 12th out of 162 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Prevalence of stunting, height for age in Madagascar, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 56.1% | — |
| 2001 | 55.8% | -0.5% |
| 2002 | 55.6% | -0.4% |
| 2003 | 55.3% | -0.5% |
| 2004 | 54.8% | -0.9% |
| 2005 | 54.3% | -0.9% |
| 2006 | 53.7% | -1.1% |
| 2007 | 52.9% | -1.5% |
| 2008 | 52.0% | -1.7% |
| 2009 | 51.0% | -1.9% |
| 2010 | 50.1% | -1.8% |
| 2011 | 49.2% | -1.8% |
| 2012 | 48.2% | -2.0% |
| 2013 | 47.4% | -1.7% |
| 2014 | 46.5% | -1.9% |
| 2015 | 45.6% | -1.9% |
| 2016 | 44.6% | -2.2% |
| 2017 | 43.5% | -2.5% |
| 2018 | 42.3% | -2.8% |
| 2019 | 41.1% | -2.8% |
| 2020 | 40.0% | -2.7% |
| 2021 | 39.3% | -1.8% |
| 2022 | 39.0% | -0.8% |
| 2023 | 38.6% | -1.0% |
| 2024 | 38.4% | -0.5% |
Madagascar compared with similar countries
- Madagascar's 38.4% is above the median for low income countries, which is 31.5%, 1.2× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Madagascar's 38.4% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 24.8%, 1.5× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 54.1% | 51.0% | 56.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 45.9% | 41.1% | 50.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 39.1% | 38.4% | 40.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Madagascar
- 9 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 44.1% compare
- 10 Afghanistan 42.0% compare
- 11 Central African Republic 38.9% compare
- 13 Mozambique 37.0% compare
- 14 Ethiopia 35.5% compare
- 15 Sudan 35.4% compare
More health data for Madagascar
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.87 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.4912 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 920.6 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 14,569 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 63 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 1.32 % 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 0.071 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 1.3 % 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 Madagascar?
- Prevalence of stunting, height for age in Madagascar was 38.4% 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 Madagascar?
- The highest recorded value was 56.1% in 2000.
- What is the lowest prevalence of stunting, height for age recorded in Madagascar?
- The lowest recorded value was 38.4% in 2024.
- How does Madagascar rank for prevalence of stunting, height for age?
- Madagascar ranks 12th out of 162 countries with data for 2024.
- Is prevalence of stunting, height for age rising or falling in Madagascar?
- Over the last ten years it is down 17.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Madagascar 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.
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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.