Number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — Value in World

World: Number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — Value was 42.8 million No in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
42.8 million No
Change on year
down 1.4%
Rank
1st
of 29 groups
All-time high
55 million No
in 2000
All-time low
42.8 million No
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

Number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — Value in World, 2000–2024

02040602000201220242000: 55 million No2001: 54.7 million No2002: 54.4 million No2003: 54.2 million No2004: 53.9 million No2005: 53.5 million No2006: 53 million No2007: 52.5 million No2008: 52.1 million No2009: 51.8 million No2010: 51.5 million No2011: 51.2 million No2012: 50.9 million No2013: 50.5 million No2014: 50 million No2015: 49.4 million No2016: 48.8 million No2017: 48.2 million No2018: 47.4 million No2019: 46.7 million No2020: 45.9 million No2021: 45 million No2022: 44.2 million No2023: 43.4 million No2024: 42.8 million No

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in million No.

Analysis

The most recent figure for number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — value in World is 42.8 million No, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

That represents a change of down 1.4% on the previous year and down 14.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — value in World peaked at 55 million No in 2000 and was at its lowest, 42.8 million No, in 2024.

That places World 1st out of 29 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.

Number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — Value in World, year by year

Annual values for Number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — Value in World, 2000 to 2024.
Year million No Change
2000 55 million No
2001 54.7 million No -0.5%
2002 54.4 million No -0.5%
2003 54.2 million No -0.4%
2004 53.9 million No -0.6%
2005 53.5 million No -0.7%
2006 53 million No -0.9%
2007 52.5 million No -0.9%
2008 52.1 million No -0.8%
2009 51.8 million No -0.6%
2010 51.5 million No -0.6%
2011 51.2 million No -0.6%
2012 50.9 million No -0.6%
2013 50.5 million No -0.8%
2014 50 million No -1.0%
2015 49.4 million No -1.2%
2016 48.8 million No -1.2%
2017 48.2 million No -1.2%
2018 47.4 million No -1.7%
2019 46.7 million No -1.5%
2020 45.9 million No -1.7%
2021 45 million No -2.0%
2022 44.2 million No -1.8%
2023 43.4 million No -1.8%
2024 42.8 million No -1.4%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 53.51 million No 51.8 million No 55 million No 10
2010s 49.46 million No 46.7 million No 51.5 million No 10
2020s 44.26 million No 42.8 million No 45.9 million No 5

Countries ranked near World

  1. 1 India 22.2 million No compare
  2. 2 Nigeria 3.9 million No compare
  3. 3 Indonesia 1.9 million No compare
  4. 4 Bangladesh 1.7 million No compare
  5. 4 China 1.7 million No compare
  6. 4 Democratic Republic of the Congo 1.4 million No compare

See the full ranking of 81 places →

More agriculture & rural data for World

All data for World →

Frequently asked questions

What is number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — value in World?
Number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — value in World was 42.8 million No in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — value recorded in World?
The highest recorded value was 55 million No in 2000.
What is the lowest number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — value recorded in World?
The lowest recorded value was 42.8 million No in 2024.
How does World rank for number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — value?
World ranks 1st out of 29 groups with data for 2024.
Is number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — value rising or falling in World?
Over the last ten years it is down 14.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this World data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — Value. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — Value in World. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 03 September 2026, from https://agriculture.statizoid.com/stat/number-of-children-under-5-years-affected-by-wasting-million-value/world/

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About this data

Indicator
Number of children under 5 years affected by wasting (million) — Value
Unit
million No
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
81 places, 1,179 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

The Suite of Food Security Indicators presents the core set of food security indicators. Following the recommendation of experts gathered in the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) Round Table on hunger measurement, hosted at FAO headquarters in September 2011, an initial set of indicators aiming to capture various aspects of food insecurity is presented here. The choice of the indicators has been informed by expert judgement and the availability of data with sufficient coverage to enable comparisons across regions and over time. Many of these indicators are produced and published elsewhere by FAO and other international organizations. They are reported here in a single database with the aim of building a wide food security information system. More indicators will be added to this set as more data will become available. Indicators are classified along the four dimensions of food security -- availability, access, utilization and stability.