Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Western Asia and Northern Africa
Western Asia and Northern Africa: Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) was 18.1 % in 2024. ▼ Falling
Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Western Asia and Northern Africa, 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 Western Asia and Northern Africa is 18.1 %, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.1% on the previous year and down 10.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Western Asia and Northern Africa peaked at 26 % in 2000 and was at its lowest, 17.5 %, in 2020.
Western Asia and Northern Africa ranks 17th of 37 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
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 Western Asia and Northern Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 26 % | — |
| 2001 | 25.9 % | -0.4% |
| 2002 | 25.8 % | -0.4% |
| 2003 | 25.7 % | -0.4% |
| 2004 | 25.5 % | -0.8% |
| 2005 | 25.3 % | -0.8% |
| 2006 | 25 % | -1.2% |
| 2007 | 24.6 % | -1.6% |
| 2008 | 24.2 % | -1.6% |
| 2009 | 23.6 % | -2.5% |
| 2010 | 23 % | -2.5% |
| 2011 | 22.3 % | -3.0% |
| 2012 | 21.5 % | -3.6% |
| 2013 | 20.8 % | -3.3% |
| 2014 | 20.1 % | -3.4% |
| 2015 | 19.5 % | -3.0% |
| 2016 | 19 % | -2.6% |
| 2017 | 18.5 % | -2.6% |
| 2018 | 18 % | -2.7% |
| 2019 | 17.7 % | -1.7% |
| 2020 | 17.5 % | -1.1% |
| 2021 | 17.5 % | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 17.7 % | +1.1% |
| 2023 | 17.9 % | +1.1% |
| 2024 | 18.1 % | +1.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 25.16 % | 23.6 % | 26 % | 10 |
| 2010s | 20.04 % | 17.7 % | 23 % | 10 |
| 2020s | 17.74 % | 17.5 % | 18.1 % | 5 |
Countries ranked near Western Asia and Northern Africa
- 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 Malawi 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 Western Asia and Northern Africa
- Minimum dietary energy requirement (kcal/cap/day) — Value 1,828 kcal/cap/d (2025)
- Average dietary energy requirement (kcal/cap/day) — Value 2,365 kcal/cap/d (2025)
- Per capita food supply variability (kcal/cap/day) — Value 25 kcal/cap/d (2025)
- Prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older) 31.6 % (2024)
- Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are overweight 7.4 % (2024)
- Gross domestic product per capita, PPP, (constant 2021 international) 23,360 Int$/cap (2024)
- Percentage of population using at least basic sanitation services 91 % (2024)
- Number of obese adults (18 years and older) (million) — Value 119 million No (2024)
- Dietary energy supply used in the estimation of the prevalence of 3,028 kcal/cap/d (2024)
- Percentage of population using safely managed sanitation services 61 % (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Western Asia and Northern Africa?
- Percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) in Western Asia and Northern Africa was 18.1 % 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 Western Asia and Northern Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 26 % in 2000.
- What is the lowest percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled) recorded in Western Asia and Northern Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.5 % in 2020.
- How does Western Asia and Northern Africa rank for percentage of children under 5 years of age who are stunted (modelled)?
- Western Asia and Northern Africa ranks 17th 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 Western Asia and Northern Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Western Asia and Northern 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.