Weight-for-age <-2 SD (Underweight) by country
Countries reporting
95
Highest
40.71
Yemen
Lowest
0.4
Korea
Median
9.83
Years covered
40
1985–2024
Data points
950
What the numbers show
Weight-for-age <-2 SD (Underweight) is currently reported for 95 countries. The highest value is 40.71 in Yemen; the lowest is 0.4 in Korea.
The median across all reporting countries is 9.83, and the mean is 11.14.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 102.
Over the past decade 19 countries rose and 75 fell. The largest increase was in Costa Rica (up 220.0%), and the largest decrease in China (down 64.7%).
Weight-for-age <-2 SD: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yemen | 40.71 | 2022 | up 14.7% | flat |
| 2 | Niger | 34.62 | 2022 | up 8.0% | falling |
| 3 | Timor-Leste | 31.86 | 2020 | down 29.0% | falling |
| 4 | India | 31.47 | 2020 | down 27.7% | falling |
| 5 | Burundi | 28.3 | 2024 | up 1.4% | falling |
| 6 | Congo, Democratic Republic of the | 25 | 2023 | up 7.0% | falling |
| 7 | Nigeria | 24.4 | 2021 | up 0.7% | falling |
| 8 | Lao People's Democratic Republic | 24.3 | 2023 | down 8.6% | falling |
| 9 | Pakistan | 23.06 | 2018 | down 26.5% | falling |
| 10 | Madagascar | 22.62 | 2021 | down 20.4% | falling |
| 11 | Mauritania | 22.4 | 2022 | up 10.0% | falling |
| 12 | Bangladesh | 21.68 | 2022 | down 34.3% | falling |
| 13 | Ethiopia | 21.22 | 2019 | down 27.3% | falling |
| 14 | Benin | 19.64 | 2021 | up 14.9% | falling |
| 15 | Myanmar | 19.5 | 2018 | down 13.7% | falling |
| 16 | Guinea-Bissau | 18.83 | 2019 | up 15.0% | falling |
| 17 | Central African Republic | 18.4 | 2022 | down 24.9% | falling |
| 18 | Afghanistan | 18.36 | 2022 | down 25.5% | falling |
| 19 | Nepal | 18.35 | 2022 | down 36.6% | falling |
| 20 | Chad | 18.18 | 2022 | down 40.1% | falling |
| 21 | Djibouti | 17.7 | 2023 | down 31.9% | falling |
| 22 | Sri Lanka | 17.1 | 2024 | down 34.5% | falling |
| 23 | Burkina Faso | 16.94 | 2021 | down 32.4% | falling |
| 24 | Philippines | 16.67 | 2021 | down 17.4% | falling |
| 25 | Cambodia | 16.32 | 2021 | down 43.6% | falling |
| 26 | Senegal | 16.23 | 2023 | up 10.0% | falling |
| 27 | Indonesia | 15.95 | 2023 | down 19.9% | falling |
| 28 | Mozambique | 15.35 | 2022 | down 1.6% | falling |
| 29 | Malaysia | 15.3 | 2022 | up 22.9% | falling |
| 30 | Togo | 15.21 | 2017 | down 25.8% | falling |
| 31 | Mali | 15 | 2024 | down 37.8% | falling |
| 32 | Guinea | 14.99 | 2022 | down 20.1% | falling |
| 33 | Maldives | 14.79 | 2017 | down 16.5% | falling |
| 34 | Guatemala | 14.4 | 2021 | up 2.0% | falling |
| 35 | Côte d'Ivoire | 13.59 | 2021 | down 12.1% | falling |
| 36 | Lesotho | 12.54 | 2024 | up 18.9% | falling |
| 37 | Ghana | 11.98 | 2022 | down 10.3% | falling |
| 38 | Sierra Leone | 11.98 | 2021 | down 35.3% | falling |
| 39 | Zambia | 11.82 | 2018 | down 20.7% | falling |
| 40 | Gambia | 11.64 | 2020 | down 42.5% | falling |
| 41 | Malawi | 11.6 | 2020 | down 16.2% | falling |
| 42 | Tanzania, United Republic of | 11.43 | 2022 | down 18.7% | falling |
| 43 | Oman | 11.2 | 2017 | up 30.2% | falling |
| 44 | Cameroon | 11.03 | 2018 | down 33.3% | falling |
| 45 | Liberia | 10.87 | 2019 | down 33.7% | falling |
| 46 | Haiti | 10.67 | 2023 | down 17.9% | falling |
| 47 | Syrian Arab Republic | 10.39 | 2010 | up 73.1% | falling |
| 48 | Kenya | 9.83 | 2022 | down 20.7% | falling |
| 49 | Viet Nam | 9.7 | 2023 | down 36.6% | falling |
| 49 | Uganda | 9.7 | 2022 | down 18.4% | falling |
| 51 | Zimbabwe | 9.6 | 2024 | down 14.0% | flat |
| 52 | Guyana | 9.37 | 2019 | down 14.9% | falling |
| 53 | Democratic People's Republic of Korea | 9.3 | 2017 | down 50.5% | volatile |
| 54 | Comoros | 9.13 | 2022 | down 46.1% | falling |
| 55 | Bhutan | 8.7 | 2023 | down 31.3% | volatile |
| 56 | Rwanda | 7.65 | 2020 | down 34.6% | falling |
| 57 | Honduras | 7.12 | 2019 | down 17.7% | falling |
| 58 | Thailand | 6.69 | 2022 | down 27.1% | falling |
| 59 | Tajikistan | 5.2 | 2023 | down 60.8% | falling |
| 60 | Eswatini | 5.01 | 2021 | down 14.7% | falling |
| 61 | El Salvador | 5 | 2021 | down 25.1% | falling |
| 62 | Ecuador | 4.94 | 2024 | down 2.5% | falling |
| 63 | South Africa | 4.9 | 2017 | down 46.2% | falling |
| 64 | Iran (Islamic Republic of) | 4.3 | 2017 | down 6.5% | volatile |
| 65 | Mexico | 4.23 | 2022 | up 50.0% | falling |
| 66 | Iraq | 3.94 | 2018 | down 44.6% | falling |
| 67 | Egypt | 3.71 | 2021 | down 45.4% | falling |
| 68 | Colombia | 3.69 | 2016 | down 26.0% | falling |
| 69 | Saudi Arabia | 3.5 | 2020 | down 38.6% | volatile |
| 70 | Romania | 3.49 | 2002 | down 30.2% | falling |
| 71 | Bolivia, Plurinational State of | 3.43 | 2016 | down 23.3% | falling |
| 72 | Azerbaijan | 3.02 | 2023 | down 38.6% | falling |
| 73 | Morocco | 3 | 2019 | up 3.0% | volatile |
| 74 | Dominican Republic | 2.98 | 2019 | down 11.7% | falling |
| 75 | Kyrgyzstan | 2.91 | 2023 | down 23.0% | volatile |
| 76 | Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of | 2.9 | 2009 | down 29.3% | falling |
| 77 | Costa Rica | 2.88 | 2018 | up 220.0% | flat |
| 78 | Kuwait | 2.79 | 2023 | down 21.9% | rising |
| 79 | Peru | 2.66 | 2023 | down 26.7% | falling |
| 80 | Algeria | 2.66 | 2019 | down 23.0% | falling |
| 81 | Armenia | 2.64 | 2016 | down 36.7% | rising |
| 82 | Jamaica | 2.54 | 2018 | up 7.3% | falling |
| 83 | Jordan | 2.5 | 2023 | down 16.6% | falling |
| 84 | China | 2.4 | 2013 | down 64.7% | volatile |
| 85 | Palestine, State of | 2.12 | 2020 | down 43.2% | falling |
| 86 | Kazakhstan | 1.95 | 2015 | down 60.0% | falling |
| 87 | Mongolia | 1.9 | 2023 | up 22.1% | volatile |
| 88 | Uruguay | 1.79 | 2018 | down 54.2% | falling |
| 89 | Uzbekistan | 1.77 | 2021 | down 60.2% | volatile |
| 90 | Tunisia | 1.6 | 2018 | down 51.5% | volatile |
| 91 | Türkiye | 1.49 | 2018 | down 20.4% | volatile |
| 92 | United Kingdom | 0.6 | 2019 | unchanged | falling |
| 93 | Chile | 0.5 | 2014 | down 16.7% | volatile |
| 94 | United States | 0.4 | 2018 | down 42.9% | falling |
| 94 | Korea | 0.4 | 2020 | down 50.0% | falling |