Prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older) in Cameroon
Cameroon: Prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older) was 16 % in 2024. ▲ Rising
Prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older) in Cameroon, 2000–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older) in Cameroon stood at 16 %. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.6% on the previous year and up 30.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older) in Cameroon peaked at 16 % in 2024 and was at its lowest, 6.8 %, in 2000.
Cameroon ranks 134th of 184 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older) in Cameroon, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 6.8 % | — |
| 2001 | 7.3 % | +7.4% |
| 2002 | 7.8 % | +6.8% |
| 2003 | 8.3 % | +6.4% |
| 2004 | 8.8 % | +6.0% |
| 2005 | 9.2 % | +4.5% |
| 2006 | 9.7 % | +5.4% |
| 2007 | 10.1 % | +4.1% |
| 2008 | 10.5 % | +4.0% |
| 2009 | 10.8 % | +2.9% |
| 2010 | 11.1 % | +2.8% |
| 2011 | 11.4 % | +2.7% |
| 2012 | 11.7 % | +2.6% |
| 2013 | 12 % | +2.6% |
| 2014 | 12.3 % | +2.5% |
| 2015 | 12.6 % | +2.4% |
| 2016 | 12.9 % | +2.4% |
| 2017 | 13.2 % | +2.3% |
| 2018 | 13.6 % | +3.0% |
| 2019 | 14 % | +2.9% |
| 2020 | 14.4 % | +2.9% |
| 2021 | 14.8 % | +2.8% |
| 2022 | 15.2 % | +2.7% |
| 2023 | 15.6 % | +2.6% |
| 2024 | 16 % | +2.6% |
Cameroon compared with similar countries
- Cameroon's 16 % is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 16.8 %, 95% of the median. (41 countries reporting)
- Cameroon's 16 % is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 12.7 %, 1.3× the median. (44 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 8.93 % | 6.8 % | 10.8 % | 10 |
| 2010s | 12.48 % | 11.1 % | 14 % | 10 |
| 2020s | 15.2 % | 14.4 % | 16 % | 5 |
Countries ranked near Cameroon
More agriculture & rural data for Cameroon
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 0.9031 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1685 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 332.28 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.98 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.4433 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 16.8% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 16.8% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 14.9% (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older) in Cameroon?
- Prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older) in Cameroon was 16 % in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older) recorded in Cameroon?
- The highest recorded value was 16 % in 2024.
- What is the lowest prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older) recorded in Cameroon?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.8 % in 2000.
- How does Cameroon rank for prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older)?
- Cameroon ranks 134th out of 184 countries with data for 2024.
- Is prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older) rising or falling in Cameroon?
- Over the last ten years it is up 30.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Cameroon data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Prevalence of obesity in the adult population (18 years and older) (percent) — Value. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).
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.