Stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: Stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) was 42.0% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
42.0%
Change on year
up 1.0%
World rank
10th
of 161 countries
All-time high
55.5%
in 2000
All-time low
40.7%
in 2020
Years of data
25
2000–2024
Stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Afghanistan, 2000–2024
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
Analysis
The most recent figure for stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Afghanistan is 42.0%, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of up 1.0% on the previous year and down 1.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Afghanistan peaked at 55.5% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 40.7%, in 2020.
Afghanistan ranks 10th of 161 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Afghanistan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 55.5% | — |
| 2001 | 55.2% | -0.5% |
| 2002 | 54.4% | -1.4% |
| 2003 | 53.4% | -1.8% |
| 2004 | 52.4% | -1.9% |
| 2005 | 51.3% | -2.1% |
| 2006 | 50.3% | -1.9% |
| 2007 | 49.0% | -2.6% |
| 2008 | 47.8% | -2.4% |
| 2009 | 46.5% | -2.7% |
| 2010 | 45.3% | -2.6% |
| 2011 | 44.3% | -2.2% |
| 2012 | 43.5% | -1.8% |
| 2013 | 42.9% | -1.4% |
| 2014 | 42.5% | -0.9% |
| 2015 | 42.2% | -0.7% |
| 2016 | 41.9% | -0.7% |
| 2017 | 41.5% | -1.0% |
| 2018 | 41.2% | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 40.9% | -0.7% |
| 2020 | 40.7% | -0.5% |
| 2021 | 40.8% | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 41.1% | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 41.6% | +1.2% |
| 2024 | 42.0% | +1.0% |
Afghanistan compared with similar countries
- Afghanistan's 42.0% is above the median for low income countries, which is 31.5%, 1.3× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Afghanistan's 42.0% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 9.4%, 4.5× the median. (21 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 51.6% | 46.5% | 55.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 42.6% | 40.9% | 45.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 41.2% | 40.7% | 42.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Afghanistan
- 7 Timor-Leste 45.4% compare
- 8 Guatemala 44.6% compare
- 9 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 44.1% compare
- 11 Central African Republic 38.9% compare
- 12 Madagascar 38.4% compare
- 13 Mozambique 37.0% compare
More health data for Afghanistan
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.45 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 1.03 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 812.4 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 14,735 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 19 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 1.78 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.077 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 1.75 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Afghanistan?
- Stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Afghanistan was 42.0% in 2024, according to World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
- What is the highest stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) recorded in Afghanistan?
- The highest recorded value was 55.5% in 2000.
- What is the lowest stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) recorded in Afghanistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 40.7% in 2020.
- How does Afghanistan rank for stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%)?
- Afghanistan ranks 10th out of 161 countries with data for 2024.
- Is stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) rising or falling in Afghanistan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Afghanistan data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory, published as part of Stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (% height-for-age <-2 SD), model-based estimates. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO).