Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Malawi
Malawi: Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) was 33.2 % in 2024. ▼ Falling
Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Malawi, 2000–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Malawi is 33.2 %, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is down 18.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Malawi peaked at 56.1 % in 2000 and was at its lowest, 33.2 %, in 2023.
That places Malawi 17th out of 147 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 56.1 % | — |
| 2001 | 55.9 % | -0.4% |
| 2002 | 55.5 % | -0.7% |
| 2003 | 55 % | -0.9% |
| 2004 | 54.4 % | -1.1% |
| 2005 | 53.6 % | -1.5% |
| 2006 | 52.7 % | -1.7% |
| 2007 | 51.5 % | -2.3% |
| 2008 | 50.1 % | -2.7% |
| 2009 | 48.5 % | -3.2% |
| 2010 | 46.8 % | -3.5% |
| 2011 | 45.1 % | -3.6% |
| 2012 | 43.5 % | -3.5% |
| 2013 | 41.9 % | -3.7% |
| 2014 | 40.5 % | -3.3% |
| 2015 | 39.2 % | -3.2% |
| 2016 | 37.9 % | -3.3% |
| 2017 | 36.8 % | -2.9% |
| 2018 | 35.8 % | -2.7% |
| 2019 | 34.9 % | -2.5% |
| 2020 | 34.1 % | -2.3% |
| 2021 | 33.6 % | -1.5% |
| 2022 | 33.3 % | -0.9% |
| 2023 | 33.2 % | -0.3% |
| 2024 | 33.2 % | +0.0% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 33.2 % is above the median for low income countries, which is 32.35 %, 1.0× the median. (22 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 33.2 % is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 24.8 %, 1.3× the median. (44 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 53.33 % | 48.5 % | 56.1 % | 10 |
| 2010s | 40.24 % | 34.9 % | 46.8 % | 10 |
| 2020s | 33.48 % | 33.2 % | 34.1 % | 5 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
- 14 Lesotho 35 % compare
- 14 Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) 11.7 % compare
- 15 Bolivia (Plurinational State of) 10.7 % compare
- 15 Nigeria 33.8 % compare
- 16 Côte d'Ivoire 20.3 % compare
- 16 Pakistan 33.6 % compare
- 16 Polynesia 7 % compare
- 17 Benin 33.2 % compare
- 17 Türkiye 5.5 % compare
- 18 Iran (Islamic Republic of) 4.8 % compare
- 19 India 32.9 % compare
- 19 Republic of Moldova 4.2 % compare
- 20 Zambia 32.3 % compare
More agriculture & rural data for Malawi
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 24.6 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.3003 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 201.66 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 2.19 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0012 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.8241 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 30.0% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 30.0% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.7% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Malawi?
- Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Malawi was 33.2 % in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 56.1 % in 2000.
- What is the lowest percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 33.2 % in 2023.
- How does Malawi rank for percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled)?
- Malawi ranks 17th out of 147 countries with data for 2024.
- Is percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 18.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled estimates) (percent) — Value. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
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.