Prevalence of undernourishment in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Prevalence of undernourishment was 24.1% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Prevalence of undernourishment in Sierra Leone, 2001–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in % of population.
Analysis
Sierra Leone recorded 24.1% for prevalence of undernourishment in 2023.
That represents a change of down 4.4% on the previous year and up 3.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of undernourishment in Sierra Leone peaked at 50.0% in 2001 and was at its lowest, 21.6%, in 2011.
Sierra Leone ranks 17th of 168 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 23 years of available data.
Prevalence of undernourishment in Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | % of population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 50.0% | — |
| 2002 | 49.2% | -1.6% |
| 2003 | 47.0% | -4.5% |
| 2004 | 44.4% | -5.5% |
| 2005 | 40.2% | -9.5% |
| 2006 | 36.0% | -10.4% |
| 2007 | 31.9% | -11.4% |
| 2008 | 28.1% | -11.9% |
| 2009 | 24.8% | -11.7% |
| 2010 | 22.5% | -9.3% |
| 2011 | 21.6% | -4.0% |
| 2012 | 21.9% | +1.4% |
| 2013 | 23.2% | +5.9% |
| 2014 | 23.2% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 24.1% | +3.9% |
| 2016 | 24.5% | +1.7% |
| 2017 | 26.0% | +6.1% |
| 2018 | 27.0% | +3.8% |
| 2019 | 27.8% | +3.0% |
| 2020 | 27.5% | -1.1% |
| 2021 | 26.3% | -4.4% |
| 2022 | 25.2% | -4.2% |
| 2023 | 24.1% | -4.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 39.1% | 24.8% | 50.0% | 9 |
| 2010s | 24.2% | 21.6% | 27.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 25.8% | 24.1% | 27.5% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
More health data for Sierra Leone
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -2.34 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.773 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,199 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 4,209 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 38 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 0.6447 % 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 0.0663 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 0.6611 % 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 undernourishment in Sierra Leone?
- Prevalence of undernourishment in Sierra Leone was 24.1% in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest prevalence of undernourishment recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 50.0% in 2001.
- What is the lowest prevalence of undernourishment recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was 21.6% in 2011.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for prevalence of undernourishment?
- Sierra Leone ranks 17th out of 168 countries with data for 2023.
- Is prevalence of undernourishment rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sierra Leone data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Prevalence of undernourishment (% of population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 23 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Prevalence of undernourishment is the percentage of the population whose habitual food consumption is insufficient to provide the dietary energy levels that are required to maintain a normal active and healthy life. Data showing as 2.5 may signify a prevalence of undernourishment below 2.5%.