Prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity in the female adult population (percent) (3-year average) — Confidence interval: Upper bound by country
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...
What the numbers show
Prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity in the female adult population (percent) (3-year average) — Confidence interval: Upper bound is currently reported for 131 countries. The highest value is 91.2 % in Sierra Leone; the lowest is 1.9 % in Kazakhstan.
The median across all reporting countries is 27 %, and the mean is 32.43 %.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 48.
Over the past decade 73 countries rose and 56 fell. The largest increase was in Belgium (up 246.2%), and the largest decrease in Russian Federation (down 68.9%).
Prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity in the female adult: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sierra Leone | 91.2 % | 2023 | up 17.8% | rising |
| 1 | Democratic Republic of the Congo | 83.5 % | 2023 | up 17.4% | rising |
| 2 | South Sudan | 90.4 % | 2023 | up 4.8% | flat |
| 3 | Haiti | 89.1 % | 2023 | up 3.0% | flat |
| 3 | United Republic of Tanzania | 58.4 % | 2023 | up 9.0% | rising |
| 4 | Afghanistan | 88.2 % | 2023 | up 63.9% | rising |
| 4 | Melanesia | 55.7 % | 2023 | up 3.5% | flat |
| 5 | Malawi | 83.8 % | 2023 | up 4.6% | flat |
| 6 | Liberia | 81.9 % | 2023 | down 2.6% | flat |
| 7 | Nigeria | 78.9 % | 2023 | up 115.0% | rising |
| 7 | Caribbean | 55.5 % | 2023 | down 7.8% | falling |
| 7 | Iran (Islamic Republic of) | 39.4 % | 2023 | down 21.7% | falling |
| 8 | Angola | 78.8 % | 2023 | up 1.0% | flat |
| 8 | Lao People's Democratic Republic | 37.9 % | 2023 | up 2.2% | flat |
| 9 | Yemen | 76.5 % | 2023 | up 46.3% | rising |
| 9 | Republic of Moldova | 35.5 % | 2023 | up 62.1% | rising |
| 10 | Zimbabwe | 75.8 % | 2023 | up 10.3% | rising |
| 11 | Kenya | 74.6 % | 2023 | up 34.7% | rising |
| 11 | Côte d'Ivoire | 39.5 % | 2023 | up 9.7% | rising |
| 11 | Viet Nam | 12.7 % | 2023 | up 64.9% | rising |
| 12 | Eswatini | 69 % | 2023 | — | rising |
| 13 | Benin | 68.8 % | 2023 | up 20.1% | rising |
| 14 | Chad | 68 % | 2023 | down 7.2% | falling |
| 15 | Mauritania | 67.6 % | 2023 | up 125.3% | rising |
| 16 | Ethiopia | 64.9 % | 2023 | up 6.9% | rising |
| 17 | Guinea-Bissau | 64.8 % | 2021 | up 0.9% | flat |
| 17 | Cabo Verde | 35 % | 2023 | down 15.5% | falling |
| 18 | Cameroon | 64.7 % | 2023 | up 15.1% | rising |
| 19 | Lesotho | 63.5 % | 2023 | up 24.0% | rising |
| 20 | Madagascar | 62.2 % | 2023 | down 1.0% | flat |
| 21 | Togo | 59.5 % | 2023 | down 2.6% | falling |
| 22 | Namibia | 58.2 % | 2023 | up 0.7% | flat |
| 23 | Jamaica | 57.7 % | 2023 | up 2.5% | flat |
| 24 | Botswana | 57.5 % | 2023 | up 7.5% | flat |
| 25 | Guatemala | 55.4 % | 2023 | up 14.5% | rising |
| 26 | Uganda | 53.2 % | 2023 | down 20.1% | falling |
| 27 | Niger | 51.3 % | 2023 | down 2.5% | flat |
| 28 | Lebanon | 50.1 % | 2023 | up 240.8% | rising |
| 29 | Dominican Republic | 49 % | 2023 | down 17.9% | falling |
| 30 | El Salvador | 48.8 % | 2023 | up 0.8% | rising |
| 31 | Zambia | 48.7 % | 2023 | down 8.5% | falling |
| 32 | Gambia | 48 % | 2023 | down 14.6% | flat |
| 33 | Kiribati | 47.4 % | 2023 | up 4.9% | flat |
| 34 | Burkina Faso | 44.7 % | 2023 | up 9.3% | rising |
| 35 | Ghana | 44.3 % | 2023 | up 5.2% | flat |
| 36 | Honduras | 43 % | 2023 | down 5.5% | flat |
| 37 | Cambodia | 42.7 % | 2023 | down 8.2% | flat |
| 38 | Albania | 39.5 % | 2023 | down 12.8% | falling |
| 38 | Peru | 39.5 % | 2023 | up 20.1% | rising |
| 40 | Ukraine | 39.4 % | 2023 | up 52.7% | rising |
| 41 | Argentina | 37.6 % | 2023 | up 46.9% | rising |
| 42 | Nepal | 37.2 % | 2023 | up 14.1% | rising |
| 43 | Ecuador | 36.8 % | 2023 | up 47.8% | rising |
| 44 | Myanmar | 36.5 % | 2023 | up 45.4% | rising |
| 45 | Egypt | 34.7 % | 2023 | down 2.0% | falling |
| 46 | Philippines | 34.3 % | 2023 | down 16.1% | falling |
| 47 | Mauritius | 32.9 % | 2023 | up 103.1% | rising |
| 48 | Palestine, State of | 32.5 % | 2021 | up 8.3% | rising |
| 49 | Libya | 31.4 % | 2023 | down 15.6% | falling |
| 50 | Senegal | 31.3 % | 2023 | down 14.9% | falling |
| 51 | Colombia | 31.2 % | 2023 | up 43.1% | rising |
| 52 | Paraguay | 29.2 % | 2023 | up 153.9% | rising |
| 53 | Tajikistan | 28.9 % | 2023 | up 18.4% | rising |
| 54 | Bangladesh | 28.5 % | 2023 | down 21.9% | falling |
| 55 | Tunisia | 28.2 % | 2023 | up 28.8% | rising |
| 56 | Pakistan | 27.4 % | 2023 | up 65.1% | rising |
| 57 | Georgia | 27 % | 2023 | down 26.6% | falling |
| 58 | Hungary | 23.2 % | 2023 | up 51.6% | rising |
| 59 | Finland | 22.7 % | 2023 | up 89.2% | rising |
| 60 | Mali | 22.6 % | 2023 | down 20.4% | falling |
| 61 | South Africa | 22.5 % | 2023 | up 12.5% | rising |
| 62 | Algeria | 20.9 % | 2023 | down 25.1% | falling |
| 63 | Mexico | 19.9 % | 2023 | down 24.9% | falling |
| 64 | Samoa | 19.8 % | 2023 | down 24.1% | falling |
| 65 | Grenada | 18.9 % | 2023 | down 38.0% | falling |
| 65 | Uruguay | 18.9 % | 2023 | up 18.1% | rising |
| 67 | New Zealand | 18.7 % | 2023 | up 29.0% | rising |
| 67 | Romania | 18.7 % | 2023 | down 24.0% | flat |
| 69 | Australia | 17.6 % | 2023 | up 21.4% | rising |
| 69 | Australia and New Zealand | 17.6 % | 2023 | up 23.9% | rising |
| 71 | Portugal | 17 % | 2023 | down 11.5% | flat |
| 72 | Azerbaijan | 16.9 % | 2023 | up 116.7% | rising |
| 73 | Costa Rica | 16.6 % | 2023 | up 22.1% | rising |
| 74 | Malaysia | 16.4 % | 2023 | down 4.1% | flat |
| 75 | Chile | 16.2 % | 2023 | up 23.7% | rising |
| 76 | Latvia | 16 % | 2023 | up 20.3% | rising |
| 77 | Estonia | 15.6 % | 2023 | up 30.0% | rising |
| 78 | Belize | 15.4 % | 2023 | down 54.4% | falling |
| 79 | Bulgaria | 13.7 % | 2023 | down 25.9% | flat |
| 80 | Belgium | 13.5 % | 2023 | up 246.2% | rising |
| 81 | Montenegro | 13 % | 2023 | down 17.2% | falling |
| 82 | Iceland | 12.7 % | 2023 | up 33.7% | rising |
| 82 | Singapore | 12.7 % | 2023 | up 225.6% | rising |
| 84 | North Macedonia | 12.4 % | 2023 | down 39.5% | flat |
| 85 | Czechia | 12.3 % | 2023 | up 53.8% | rising |
| 86 | Netherlands (Kingdom of the) | 12.1 % | 2023 | up 70.4% | rising |
| 87 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 11.5 % | 2023 | down 1.7% | rising |
| 87 | Brazil | 11.5 % | 2023 | down 26.3% | flat |
| 87 | Norway | 11.5 % | 2023 | up 85.5% | rising |
| 90 | Canada | 11.4 % | 2023 | up 96.6% | rising |
| 91 | Spain | 11.1 % | 2023 | up 24.7% | flat |
| 91 | Malta | 11.1 % | 2023 | up 35.4% | rising |
| 93 | Israel | 11 % | 2023 | down 20.3% | falling |
| 93 | Slovenia | 11 % | 2023 | down 34.1% | falling |
| 95 | Sri Lanka | 10.5 % | 2023 | up 87.5% | rising |
| 96 | Slovakia | 10.3 % | 2023 | up 32.1% | rising |
| 97 | Kuwait | 10.2 % | 2023 | down 11.3% | falling |
| 98 | Lithuania | 9.8 % | 2023 | down 47.9% | falling |
| 98 | Sweden | 9.8 % | 2023 | up 63.3% | rising |
| 100 | France | 9.6 % | 2023 | up 12.9% | rising |
| 100 | Kyrgyzstan | 9.6 % | 2023 | up 57.4% | rising |
| 102 | Armenia | 9.4 % | 2023 | down 50.0% | falling |
| 103 | Serbia | 8.9 % | 2023 | down 36.0% | falling |
| 104 | Greece | 8.5 % | 2023 | down 53.3% | falling |
| 105 | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | 8.3 % | 2023 | down 25.2% | falling |
| 106 | Croatia | 8.1 % | 2023 | down 4.7% | flat |
| 107 | Denmark | 7.7 % | 2023 | down 2.5% | flat |
| 108 | Ireland | 7.2 % | 2023 | down 28.0% | falling |
| 109 | Austria | 5.9 % | 2023 | down 22.4% | falling |
| 109 | Republic of Korea | 5.9 % | 2023 | up 18.0% | rising |
| 111 | Mongolia | 5.8 % | 2023 | down 26.6% | falling |
| 112 | Japan | 5.6 % | 2023 | up 100.0% | rising |
| 112 | Thailand | 5.6 % | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 114 | Germany | 5.2 % | 2023 | down 10.3% | flat |
| 115 | Poland | 4.5 % | 2023 | down 62.5% | falling |
| 116 | Indonesia | 4.4 % | 2023 | down 29.0% | falling |
| 117 | Luxembourg | 3.4 % | 2023 | down 46.0% | falling |
| 118 | Russian Federation | 3.2 % | 2023 | down 68.9% | falling |
| 119 | Switzerland | 2.7 % | 2023 | down 62.5% | falling |
| 120 | Belarus | 1.9 % | 2023 | down 5.0% | rising |
| 120 | Kazakhstan | 1.9 % | 2023 | down 57.8% | falling |
Regions and income groups
Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.
- Eastern Africa 64.8 %
- Middle Africa 77.8 %
- Low-income economies 64.6 %
- Western Africa 63.5 %
- Sub-Saharan Africa 63.1 %
- Low Income Food Deficit Countries (LIFDCs) 62.6 %
- Least Developed Countries (LDCs) 55.5 %
- Africa 57.3 %
- Small Island Developing States (SIDS) 49.5 %
- Oceania excluding Australia and New Zealand 52.8 %
- Land Locked Developing Countries (LLDCs) 49.7 %
- Lower-middle-income economies 40.7 %
- Asia 22 %
- Western Asia 38.3 %
- Southern Asia 38.2 %
- Central Asia and Southern Asia 37.4 %
- Western Asia and Northern Africa 36.4 %
- Northern Africa 35.2 %
- Central America 26.7 %
- Latin America and the Caribbean 26.5 %
- Southern Africa 26.5 %
- Oceania 26.4 %
- World 25.2 %
- South America 23.8 %
- Central Asia 16.9 %
- South-eastern Asia 14.3 %
- Upper-middle-income economies 13.1 %
- United States of America 12.9 %
- Northern America 12.7 %
- Eastern Europe 10.3 %
- Northern America and Europe 9.4 %
- Eastern Asia and South-eastern Asia 8.5 %
- High-income economies 8.3 %
- Europe 8.1 %
- Northern Europe 8 %
- Southern Europe 7.5 %
- Western Europe 7 %
- Eastern Asia 6.5 %
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.