Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Prevalence of wasting, weight for height was 5.9% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Sub-Saharan Africa, 2000–2024
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
Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 5.9% for prevalence of wasting, weight for height in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of down 2.0% on the previous year and down 18.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 9.4% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 5.9%, in 2024.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | % of children under 5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 9.4% | — |
| 2001 | 9.2% | -1.9% |
| 2002 | 9.0% | -2.0% |
| 2003 | 8.9% | -1.9% |
| 2004 | 8.7% | -1.9% |
| 2005 | 8.5% | -2.0% |
| 2006 | 8.4% | -1.9% |
| 2007 | 8.2% | -1.9% |
| 2008 | 8.0% | -2.0% |
| 2009 | 7.9% | -2.0% |
| 2010 | 7.7% | -1.9% |
| 2011 | 7.6% | -1.9% |
| 2012 | 7.4% | -2.0% |
| 2013 | 7.3% | -1.9% |
| 2014 | 7.2% | -1.9% |
| 2015 | 7.0% | -2.0% |
| 2016 | 6.9% | -2.0% |
| 2017 | 6.7% | -2.0% |
| 2018 | 6.6% | -1.9% |
| 2019 | 6.5% | -2.0% |
| 2020 | 6.3% | -1.9% |
| 2021 | 6.2% | -2.0% |
| 2022 | 6.1% | -1.9% |
| 2023 | 6.0% | -2.0% |
| 2024 | 5.9% | -2.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 8.6% | 7.9% | 9.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.1% | 6.5% | 7.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.1% | 5.9% | 6.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
- 4 Djibouti 12.1% compare
- 5 Nigeria 11.6% compare
- 6 Syrian Arab Republic 11.5% compare
- 7 Malaysia 11.0% compare
- 8 Niger 10.9% compare
- 9 Bangladesh 10.7% compare
- 9 Lao People's Democratic Republic 10.7% compare
More health data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Population ages 15-64, male, annual growth rate 3.04 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, total, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, total, per capita 0.4038 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, female, annual growth rate 2.96 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, female, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, female, per capita 0.2837 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, male, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, total, annual growth rate 3 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, male, per capita 0.2801 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Sub-Saharan Africa was 5.9% 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 Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 9.4% in 2000.
- What is the lowest prevalence of wasting, weight for height recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.9% in 2024.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for prevalence of wasting, weight for height?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 7th out of 14 groups with data for 2024.
- Is prevalence of wasting, weight for height rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 18.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa 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.