Weight-for-height <-2 SD in Nigeria

Nigeria: Weight-for-height <-2 SD was 11.6 in 2021. ▼ Falling

Latest (2021)
11.6
Change on year
up 79.7%
World rank
5th
of 98 countries
All-time high
20.6
in 1993
All-time low
6.46
in 2020
Years of data
10
1990–2021

Weight-for-height <-2 SD in Nigeria, 1990–2021

51015201990200520211990: 11.71993: 20.62003: 11.22011: 10.22014: 7.92015: 7.32016: 10.82018: 6.82020: 6.52021: 11.6

Source: UNICEF.

Analysis

Nigeria recorded 11.6 for weight-for-height <-2 sd in 2021.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 79.7% on the previous year and up 13.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, weight-for-height <-2 sd in Nigeria peaked at 20.6 in 1993 and was at its lowest, 6.46, in 2020.

Nigeria ranks 5th of 98 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 10 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 16.13 11.66 20.6 2
2000s 11.22 11.22 11.22 1
2010s 8.61 6.79 10.79 5
2020s 9.03 6.46 11.6 2

Countries ranked near Nigeria

  1. 2 Yemen 16.85 compare
  2. 3 Mauritania 13.6 compare
  3. 4 Djibouti 12.1 compare
  4. 6 Syrian Arab Republic 11.55 compare
  5. 7 Malaysia 11 compare
  6. 8 Niger 10.87 compare

See the full ranking of 154 places →

More health data for Nigeria

All data for Nigeria →

Frequently asked questions

What is weight-for-height <-2 sd in Nigeria?
Weight-for-height <-2 sd in Nigeria was 11.6 in 2021, according to UNICEF.
What is the highest weight-for-height <-2 sd recorded in Nigeria?
The highest recorded value was 20.6 in 1993.
What is the lowest weight-for-height <-2 sd recorded in Nigeria?
The lowest recorded value was 6.46 in 2020.
How does Nigeria rank for weight-for-height <-2 sd?
Nigeria ranks 5th out of 98 countries with data for 2021.
Is weight-for-height <-2 sd rising or falling in Nigeria?
Over the last ten years it is up 13.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Nigeria data come from?
The figures come from UNICEF, published as part of Weight-for-height <-2 SD (wasting). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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CSV · JSON — 10 observations, free to reuse under UNICEF Terms of Use (attribution required).

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Weight-for-height <-2 SD in Nigeria. Statizoid, drawing on UNICEF. Retrieved 21 August 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/weight-for-height-2-sd-wasting/nigeria/

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About this data

Indicator
Weight-for-height <-2 SD (wasting)
Source
UNICEF
Licence
UNICEF Terms of Use (attribution required)
Coverage
154 places, 2,355 data points, 1985–2024
Last refreshed