Prevalence of wasting, weight for height (% of children under 5) by country
Prevalence of wasting is the proportion of children under age 5 whose weight for height is more than two standard deviations below the median for the international reference population ages 0-59 months.
Countries reporting
99
Highest
18.7%
India
Lowest
0.1%
United States of America
Median
4.2%
Years covered
41
1984–2024
Data points
1,312
What the numbers show
Prevalence of wasting, weight for height (% of children under 5) is currently reported for 99 countries. The highest value is 18.7% in India; the lowest is 0.1% in United States of America.
The median across all reporting countries is 4.2%, and the mean is 5.1%.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 187.
Over the past decade 30 countries rose and 66 fell. The largest increase was in Mongolia (up 170.0%), and the largest decrease in United States of America (down 66.7%).
Prevalence of wasting, weight for height: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | 18.7% | 2020 | down 6.5% | falling |
| 2 | Yemen | 16.8% | 2022 | up 26.3% | falling |
| 3 | Mauritania | 13.6% | 2022 | up 16.2% | falling |
| 4 | Djibouti | 12.1% | 2023 | down 12.9% | falling |
| 5 | Nigeria | 11.6% | 2021 | up 13.7% | falling |
| 6 | Syrian Arab Republic | 11.5% | 2010 | up 134.7% | rising |
| 7 | Malaysia | 11.0% | 2022 | up 35.8% | falling |
| 8 | Niger | 10.9% | 2022 | down 18.7% | falling |
| 9 | Bangladesh | 10.7% | 2022 | down 2.7% | falling |
| 9 | Lao People's Democratic Republic | 10.7% | 2023 | up 81.4% | falling |
| 11 | Senegal | 10.2% | 2023 | up 13.3% | rising |
| 12 | Cambodia | 9.6% | 2021 | down 12.7% | falling |
| 13 | Burkina Faso | 9.3% | 2021 | down 10.6% | falling |
| 13 | Sri Lanka | 9.3% | 2024 | down 56.3% | falling |
| 13 | Oman | 9.3% | 2017 | up 31.0% | falling |
| 16 | Maldives | 9.1% | 2017 | down 14.2% | falling |
| 17 | Indonesia | 8.4% | 2023 | down 37.8% | falling |
| 18 | Benin | 8.3% | 2021 | up 62.7% | falling |
| 18 | Timor-Leste | 8.3% | 2020 | down 56.1% | falling |
| 20 | Côte d'Ivoire | 8.1% | 2021 | up 52.8% | falling |
| 21 | Burundi | 7.8% | 2024 | down 2.5% | falling |
| 21 | Guinea-Bissau | 7.8% | 2019 | up 62.5% | falling |
| 21 | Chad | 7.8% | 2022 | down 52.1% | falling |
| 24 | Myanmar | 7.4% | 2018 | down 6.3% | falling |
| 25 | Congo, Democratic Republic of the | 7.2% | 2023 | down 11.1% | falling |
| 25 | Madagascar | 7.2% | 2021 | up 26.3% | falling |
| 25 | Thailand | 7.2% | 2022 | up 7.5% | rising |
| 28 | Pakistan | 7.1% | 2018 | down 52.3% | falling |
| 29 | Nepal | 7.0% | 2022 | down 37.5% | flat |
| 30 | Ethiopia | 6.8% | 2019 | down 30.6% | falling |
| 31 | Guyana | 6.5% | 2019 | up 18.2% | falling |
| 32 | Guinea | 6.4% | 2022 | down 36.0% | falling |
| 32 | Tajikistan | 6.4% | 2023 | down 35.4% | volatile |
| 34 | Sierra Leone | 6.3% | 2021 | down 16.0% | falling |
| 35 | Ghana | 5.8% | 2022 | down 6.5% | falling |
| 36 | Togo | 5.7% | 2017 | down 5.0% | falling |
| 37 | Mali | 5.4% | 2024 | down 58.8% | falling |
| 37 | Philippines | 5.4% | 2021 | down 22.9% | falling |
| 39 | Central African Republic | 5.2% | 2022 | down 29.7% | falling |
| 40 | Bhutan | 5.1% | 2023 | down 13.6% | rising |
| 40 | Comoros | 5.1% | 2022 | down 54.5% | falling |
| 40 | Gambia | 5.1% | 2020 | down 46.3% | falling |
| 40 | Zimbabwe | 5.1% | 2024 | up 59.4% | falling |
| 44 | Haiti | 5.0% | 2023 | down 20.6% | falling |
| 45 | Kenya | 4.5% | 2022 | down 25.0% | falling |
| 46 | Armenia | 4.4% | 2016 | down 18.5% | rising |
| 46 | Viet Nam | 4.4% | 2023 | down 33.3% | falling |
| 48 | Cameroon | 4.3% | 2018 | down 43.4% | falling |
| 48 | Iran, Islamic Republic of | 4.3% | 2017 | down 10.4% | falling |
| 50 | Zambia | 4.2% | 2018 | down 25.0% | falling |
| 51 | Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of | 4.1% | 2009 | up 2.5% | rising |
| 52 | Saudi Arabia | 3.9% | 2020 | down 9.3% | volatile |
| 53 | Mozambique | 3.8% | 2022 | down 37.7% | falling |
| 54 | Afghanistan | 3.6% | 2022 | down 62.1% | volatile |
| 54 | South Africa | 3.6% | 2017 | down 33.3% | falling |
| 56 | Azerbaijan | 3.5% | 2023 | up 9.4% | falling |
| 56 | Kuwait | 3.5% | 2023 | up 25.0% | rising |
| 56 | Romania | 3.5% | 2002 | up 6.1% | rising |
| 59 | Liberia | 3.4% | 2019 | down 20.9% | falling |
| 60 | Egypt | 3.3% | 2021 | down 58.2% | rising |
| 60 | Russian Federation | 3.3% | 2005 | down 25.0% | falling |
| 62 | Jamaica | 3.2% | 2018 | up 28.0% | falling |
| 62 | Uganda | 3.2% | 2022 | down 23.8% | falling |
| 64 | Kazakhstan | 3.1% | 2015 | down 36.7% | falling |
| 64 | Tanzania, United Republic of | 3.1% | 2022 | down 50.0% | falling |
| 66 | Iraq | 3.0% | 2018 | down 48.3% | falling |
| 66 | Kyrgyzstan | 3.0% | 2023 | up 7.1% | falling |
| 68 | El Salvador | 2.9% | 2021 | up 81.2% | rising |
| 69 | Algeria | 2.7% | 2019 | down 34.1% | falling |
| 69 | Mongolia | 2.7% | 2023 | up 170.0% | volatile |
| 71 | Malawi | 2.6% | 2020 | down 35.0% | falling |
| 72 | Korea, Democratic People's Republic of | 2.5% | 2017 | down 51.9% | volatile |
| 73 | Morocco | 2.4% | 2019 | up 4.3% | volatile |
| 73 | Uzbekistan | 2.4% | 2021 | down 45.5% | volatile |
| 75 | Jordan | 2.3% | 2023 | down 4.2% | falling |
| 76 | Dominican Republic | 2.2% | 2019 | down 4.3% | flat |
| 76 | Nicaragua | 2.2% | 2012 | down 4.3% | volatile |
| 78 | Tunisia | 2.1% | 2018 | down 38.2% | falling |
| 79 | Bolivia, Plurinational State of | 2.0% | 2016 | up 42.9% | volatile |
| 80 | China | 1.9% | 2017 | down 26.9% | falling |
| 80 | Honduras | 1.9% | 2019 | up 35.7% | falling |
| 82 | Eswatini | 1.8% | 2021 | up 125.0% | falling |
| 83 | Türkiye | 1.7% | 2018 | up 70.0% | falling |
| 84 | Colombia | 1.6% | 2016 | unchanged | volatile |
| 84 | Finland | 1.6% | 2023 | up 33.3% | rising |
| 84 | Lesotho | 1.6% | 2024 | down 42.9% | volatile |
| 87 | Uruguay | 1.4% | 2018 | unchanged | falling |
| 88 | Belarus | 1.3% | 2023 | — | falling |
| 88 | Palestine, State of | 1.3% | 2020 | down 60.6% | falling |
| 90 | Rwanda | 1.1% | 2020 | down 62.1% | volatile |
| 91 | Mexico | 1.0% | 2022 | down 37.5% | volatile |
| 91 | Paraguay | 1.0% | 2016 | down 9.1% | rising |
| 93 | Guatemala | 0.8% | 2021 | down 20.0% | volatile |
| 94 | Ecuador | 0.7% | 2024 | down 56.2% | falling |
| 95 | Peru | 0.6% | 2023 | up 50.0% | falling |
| 96 | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | 0.4% | 2019 | down 20.0% | volatile |
| 97 | Chile | 0.3% | 2014 | down 40.0% | falling |
| 98 | Korea | 0.2% | 2020 | down 60.0% | falling |
| 99 | United States of America | 0.1% | 2022 | down 66.7% | volatile |
Regions and income groups
Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.
- South Asia 15.7%
- Lower middle income 9.5%
- Middle income 7.0%
- Low & middle income 6.9%
- World 6.6%
- Low income 6.4%
- Sub-Saharan Africa 5.9%
- Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan 5.6%
- East Asia & Pacific 3.5%
- Upper middle income 2.1%
- Latin America & Caribbean 1.3%
- Europe & Central Asia 1.0%
- High income 0.4%
- North America 0.2%
About this data
Prevalence of wasting is the proportion of children under age 5 whose weight for height is more than two standard deviations below the median for the international reference population ages 0-59 months.