Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) was 32.2 % in 2024. ▼ Falling
Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Sub-Saharan Africa, 2000–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Sub-Saharan Africa stood at 32.2 %.
That represents a change of up 0.6% on the previous year and down 7.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 43.4 % in 2000 and was at its lowest, 31.8 %, in 2021.
Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 4th of 37 groups on this measure, in the top 10%.
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 Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 43.4 % | — |
| 2001 | 43.1 % | -0.7% |
| 2002 | 42.8 % | -0.7% |
| 2003 | 42.4 % | -0.9% |
| 2004 | 41.9 % | -1.2% |
| 2005 | 41.4 % | -1.2% |
| 2006 | 40.8 % | -1.4% |
| 2007 | 40.1 % | -1.7% |
| 2008 | 39.3 % | -2.0% |
| 2009 | 38.4 % | -2.3% |
| 2010 | 37.5 % | -2.3% |
| 2011 | 36.7 % | -2.1% |
| 2012 | 36 % | -1.9% |
| 2013 | 35.4 % | -1.7% |
| 2014 | 34.8 % | -1.7% |
| 2015 | 34.3 % | -1.4% |
| 2016 | 33.8 % | -1.5% |
| 2017 | 33.3 % | -1.5% |
| 2018 | 32.8 % | -1.5% |
| 2019 | 32.3 % | -1.5% |
| 2020 | 31.9 % | -1.2% |
| 2021 | 31.8 % | -0.3% |
| 2022 | 31.9 % | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 32 % | +0.3% |
| 2024 | 32.2 % | +0.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 41.36 % | 38.4 % | 43.4 % | 10 |
| 2010s | 34.69 % | 32.3 % | 37.5 % | 10 |
| 2020s | 31.96 % | 31.8 % | 32.2 % | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
- 1 Burundi 55.3 % compare
- 1 Timor-Leste 45.4 % compare
- 2 Democratic Republic of the Congo 44.1 % compare
- 2 Niger 48.3 % compare
- 3 Eritrea 48 % compare
- 3 Melanesia 43.6 % compare
- 4 Angola 47.7 % compare
- 5 Papua New Guinea 47.6 % compare
- 6 Lao People's Democratic Republic 29.9 % compare
- 6 United Republic of Tanzania 29.9 % compare
- 6 Yemen 47.4 % compare
- 7 Guatemala 44.6 % compare
More agriculture & rural data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 10.7 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5534 units per person (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1791 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 299.6 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.53 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 2.6% (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 395.96 billion current US$ (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 17.9% (2025)
- Rural population 731.42 million (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Sub-Saharan Africa was 32.2 % 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 Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 43.4 % in 2000.
- What is the lowest percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 31.8 % in 2021.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled)?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 4th out of 37 groups with data for 2024.
- Is percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa 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.