Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Malawi
Malawi: Prevalence of wasting, weight for height was 2.6% in 2020. ▼ Falling
Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Malawi, 1992–2020
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 Malawi is 2.6%, measured in 2020.
That represents a change of down 31.6% on the previous year and down 35.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Malawi peaked at 8.9% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 1.5%, in 2018.
Malawi ranks 71st of 99 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 16 years of available data.
Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % of children under 5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 6.6% | — |
| 1995 | 8.5% | +28.8% |
| 1998 | 8.9% | +4.7% |
| 2000 | 6.8% | -23.6% |
| 2002 | 6.3% | -7.4% |
| 2004 | 6.3% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 4.2% | -33.3% |
| 2009 | 1.9% | -54.8% |
| 2010 | 4.0% | +110.5% |
| 2014 | 3.8% | -5.0% |
| 2015 | 2.8% | -26.3% |
| 2016 | 4.1% | +46.4% |
| 2017 | 2.6% | -36.6% |
| 2018 | 1.5% | -42.3% |
| 2019 | 3.8% | +153.3% |
| 2020 | 2.6% | -31.6% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 2.6% is below the median for low income countries, which is 6.3%, 41% of the median. (21 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 2.6% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 5.6%, 47% of the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 8.0% | 6.6% | 8.9% | 3 |
| 2000s | 5.1% | 1.9% | 6.8% | 5 |
| 2010s | 3.2% | 1.5% | 4.1% | 7 |
| 2020s | 2.6% | 2.6% | 2.6% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
- 68 El Salvador 2.9% compare
- 69 Algeria 2.7% compare
- 69 Mongolia 2.7% compare
- 72 Korea, Democratic People's Republic of 2.5% compare
- 73 Morocco 2.4% compare
- 73 Uzbekistan 2.4% compare
More health data for Malawi
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -0.8368 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.9312 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 856.3 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 6,399 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 1.61 % 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 0.0714 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 1.63 % 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 wasting, weight for height in Malawi?
- Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Malawi was 2.6% in 2020, 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 Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 8.9% in 1998.
- What is the lowest prevalence of wasting, weight for height recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.5% in 2018.
- How does Malawi rank for prevalence of wasting, weight for height?
- Malawi ranks 71st out of 99 countries with data for 2020.
- Is prevalence of wasting, weight for height rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 35.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi 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.
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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.