Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Burundi
Burundi: Prevalence of wasting, weight for height was 7.8% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Burundi, 1987–2024
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
The most recent figure for prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Burundi is 7.8%, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 66.0% on the previous year and down 2.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Burundi peaked at 9.0% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 4.7%, in 2023.
Burundi ranks 21st of 99 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 12 years of available data.
Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Burundi, year by year
| Year | % of children under 5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 7.8% | — |
| 2000 | 8.1% | +3.8% |
| 2005 | 9.0% | +11.1% |
| 2010 | 6.0% | -33.3% |
| 2012 | 8.0% | +33.3% |
| 2016 | 5.1% | -36.3% |
| 2018 | 4.8% | -5.9% |
| 2019 | 4.8% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 5.7% | +18.8% |
| 2022 | 5.0% | -12.3% |
| 2023 | 4.7% | -6.0% |
| 2024 | 7.8% | +66.0% |
Burundi compared with similar countries
- Burundi's 7.8% is above the median for low income countries, which is 6.3%, 1.2× the median. (21 countries reporting)
- Burundi's 7.8% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 5.6%, 1.4× the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 7.8% | 7.8% | 7.8% | 1 |
| 2000s | 8.6% | 8.1% | 9.0% | 2 |
| 2010s | 5.7% | 4.8% | 8.0% | 5 |
| 2020s | 5.8% | 4.7% | 7.8% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Burundi
- 18 Benin 8.3% compare
- 18 Timor-Leste 8.3% compare
- 20 Côte d'Ivoire 8.1% compare
- 21 Chad 7.8% compare
- 21 Guinea-Bissau 7.8% compare
- 24 Myanmar 7.4% compare
More health data for Burundi
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.03 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 1.1 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 929.4 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 8,143 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 26 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 0.736 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0759 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 0.7548 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Burundi?
- Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Burundi was 7.8% in 2024, 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 wasting, weight for height recorded in Burundi?
- The highest recorded value was 9.0% in 2005.
- What is the lowest prevalence of wasting, weight for height recorded in Burundi?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.7% in 2023.
- How does Burundi rank for prevalence of wasting, weight for height?
- Burundi ranks 21st out of 99 countries with data for 2024.
- Is prevalence of wasting, weight for height rising or falling in Burundi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Burundi 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 wasting, weight for height (% of children under 5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
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.