Stunting prevalence

Prevalence of stunting in children under 5 (%)

Official estimate updated 8 January 2024

Prevalence of stunting in children under 5 (%)

Prevalence of stunting (weight for height <-2 standard deviation from the Child Growth Standards median) among children under 5 years of age. (SDG 2.2.1)

Related publications

Global report Published 21 May 2024

World health statistics 2024: monitoring health for the SDGs, sustainable development goals

Statistical releases

Statistical release 19 May 2022

World Health Statistics 2022

Official WHO statistics for selected health-related SDG indicators and selected Thirteenth General Programme of Work indicators, based on data available in early 2022.

Statistical release 5 May 2021

Joint model based estimates for stunting and overweight, 2021 (Joint Malnutrition Estimates)

Estimates for child stunting, overweight, underweight, wasting and severe wasting. These new estimates supersede former analyses results published by the JME group, and the entire time series is updated based on available data to date.

Statistical release 21 May 2024

World health statistics 2024: monitoring health for the SDGs, sustainable development goals

The World health statistics report is the annual compilation of health and health-related indicators, which has been published by the World Health Organization since 2005.

The 2024 edition reviews more than 50 health-related indicators from the Sustainable Development Goals and WHO’s Thirteenth General Programme of Work. It also highlights the findings from the Global health estimates 2021, notably the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on life expectancy and healthy life expectancy.

Title and Description

Name	Prevalence of stunting in children under 5 (%)
Short name	Prevalence of stunting in children under 5 (%)
Indicator unique identifier	5F8A486
Indicator codes	NUTSTUNTINGPREV
Also known as	SDG indicator 2.2.1
Short description	Prevalence of stunting (weight for height <-2 standard deviation from the Child Growth Standards median) among children under 5 years of age. (SDG 2.2.1)
Definition	The prevalence of stunting (height-for-age <-2 standard deviation from the median of the World Health Organization (WHO) Child Growth Standards) among children under 5 years of age.
Direction of progress	Figures decreasing over time demonstrates progress.
Framework classifications	Impact
Indicator status	Actively collected and reported

Publishing and updates

Most recent data update	8 January 2024
Next expected data update	2024/2025
Expected frequency of data release	Annual
Data release notes	The UNICEF-WHO-WB Joint Child Malnutrition (JME) group releases country, regional and worldwide estimates at the end of March so that data are available for the SDG report and database. The JME group also maintain a dataset of primary data sources (household surveys) used to generate the JME global estimates.
Publishing institution	WHO

Data copyright and licensing

Copyright	Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
License	The World Health Organization (“WHO”) encourages public access and use of the data that it collects and publishes on its web site data.who.int. The data are organized in datasets and made available in machine-readable format (“Datasets”). The Datasets have been compiled from data provided by WHO’s Member States under the WHO policy on the use and sharing of data collected by WHO in Member States outside the context of public health emergencies. Use of the data derived from the Datasets, which may appear in formats such as tables and charts, is also subject to these Terms and Conditions. Datasets may include data describing the Dataset called “Metadata”. If any datasets are credited to a source other than WHO, then those materials are not covered by these Terms and Conditions, and permission should be sought from the source provided. You are responsible for determining if this is the case, and if so, you are responsible for obtaining any necessary permission from the sources indicated. The risk of claims resulting from infringement of any third-party-owned component in the materials rests solely with you. You may use our application programming interfaces (“APIs”) to facilitate access to the Datasets, whether through a separate web site or through another type of software application. By using the Datasets or any presentations of data derived from them, or by using our APIs in connection with the Datasets, you agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions, as may be amended from time to time by WHO at its sole discretion. Unless specifically indicated otherwise, these Datasets are provided to you under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), with the additional terms below.  The basic terms applicable to the CC BY 4.0 license may be accessed here. By downloading or using the Datasets, you agree to comply with the terms of the CC BY 4.0 license, as well as the following mandatory and binding addition: Any dispute relating to the interpretation or application of this license shall, unless amicably settled, be subject to conciliation. In the event of failure of the latter, the dispute shall be settled by arbitration. The arbitration shall be conducted in accordance with the modalities to be agreed upon by the parties or, in the absence of agreement, with the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules. The parties shall accept the arbitral award as final.
Permission type	Publicly
Prohibited uses	You shall not attempt to de-anonymise the Datasets or use the Datasets in a manner that falsifies or misrepresents their content. You shall not, in connection with your use of the Datasets published on data.who.int, state or imply that WHO endorses, or is affiliated with, you, or that WHO endorses your use of data.who.int, or any content, output, or analysis resulting from or related to the data.who.int, or any entity, organization, company, product or services.
Citation	World Health Organization 2024 data.who.int, Prevalence of stunting in children under 5 (%) [Indicator]. https://data.who.int/indicators/i/A5A7413/5F8A486 (Accessed on 27 November 2024)
Disclaimers	WHO reserves the right at any time and from time to time to modify or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the Datasets, or any means of accessing or utilizing the Datasets with or without prior notice to you. Maps The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of WHO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Dotted and dashed lines on maps represent approximate border lines for which there may not yet be full agreement. All references to Kosovo should be understood to be in the context of the United Nations Security Council resolution 1244 (1999). A dispute exists between the Governments of Argentina and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland concerning sovereignty over the Falkland Islands (Malvinas). The mention of specific companies or of certain manufacturers’ products does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by WHO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. Errors and omissions excepted, the names of proprietary products are distinguished by initial capital letters. All reasonable precautions have been taken by WHO to verify the accuracy of the Datasets. However, the Datasets are being provided without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied. You will be solely responsible for your use of the Datasets. In no event shall WHO be liable for any damages arising from such use. For full disclaimers, terms of use and your indemnification of WHO, please visit Terms and conditions.

About the data

Data type	Float
Unit of measure	Percentage of children (under 5) with height-for-age <-2 standard deviation from the median of the World Health Organization (WHO) Child Growth Standards
Value display label	% of children
Short value display label	%
Subject of measure	PREVALENCE
Subject of measure sentiment	Negative
Preferred semantic value type	Per cent
Confidence intervals	Yes
Provenance	Official Estimate
Calculation type	Adjusted Predicted
First available data	31 December 1989
Most recent available data	31 December 2019
Data completeness	Incomplete data
Temporal coverage	1989 - 2019
Periodicity	Annual
Spatial coverage	World
Granularity	National
Number of countries, areas and territories	155
Geographic entities and groups	Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Czechia, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Iraq, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands (the), Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, North Macedonia, occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Republic of Tanzania, United States of America, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of), Viet Nam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe
Time intervals	1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020

Methodology

Method of measurement	Survey estimates are based on standardized methodology using the WHO Child Growth Standards as described elsewhere (Ref: Anthro software manual). Global and regional estimates are based on methodology outlined in UNICEF-WHO-The World Bank: Joint child malnutrition estimates - Levels and trends (UNICEF/WHO/WB 2021 edition).
Method of estimation aggregates	Method of estimation of global and regional aggregates: Regional aggregates are available for the following classifications: UN, MDG, UNICEF, WHO, The World Bank regions and income groups
Process of validation	UNICEF, WHO and the World Bank undertake a joint review for each potential primary data source used as to generate the JME global estimates. The group conducts a review when (at minimum) a final report with full methodological details and results are available, as well as (ideally) a data quality assessment flagging potential limitations. When the raw data are available, they are analysed using the Anthro Survey Analyzer software to produce a standard set of results and data quality outputs against which the review is conducted (UNICEF-WHO-World Bank 2020). Comments are documented in a standard review template extracting methodological details (e.g., sampling procedures, description of anthropometrical equipment), data quality outputs (e.g., weight and height distributions, percentage of cases that were flagged as implausible according to the WHO Child Growth Standards) and the malnutrition prevalence estimates from the data source under review generated based on the standard recommended methodology. These estimates are compared against the reported values, as well as against those from other data sources already included in the JME dataset, to assess the plausibility of the trend before including the new point. Reports that are preliminary, or that lack key details on methodology or results, cannot be reviewed and are left pending until full information is available. The methods used to generate the JME global estimates for stunting and overweight were cross validated to ensure estimates produced by the method are closely aligned to national data points. It was also reviewed through a technical consultation with experts and country representatives of National Statistics Offices as well as IAEG-SDGs Members in 2019 (UNICEF/WHO/World Bank, 2019). Country consultations with SDG 2.2 focal points were also held in 2020/2021 before finalizing and disseminating the JME global estimates for the in 2021 edition of the JME. The purpose of the country consultations was to explain the updated methodology for overweight estimates to national governments; to ensure the estimates included all recent and relevant primary data sources; and to engage with and receive feedback from national governments on the estimates.
Denominator	Survey estimates come with levels of uncertainty due to both sampling error and non-sampling error (e.g., measurement technical error, recording error etc.,). The JME global estimates for stunting take into account estimates of sampling error around survey estimates. While non-sampling error cannot be accounted for or reviewed in full, when available, a data quality review of weight, height and age measurements from household surveys supports compilation of a time series that is comparable across countries and over time.
Institutional mandate	WHO has an established role in the monitoring of child growth and malnutrition since the late 1980’s, and had the mandate to developed the WHO Child Growth Standards, launched in 2006, and adopted by more than 160 countries. WHO has published several peer-reviewed articles with regional and global estimates until 2012, when they joined forces with UNICEF and the World Bank, with the objective of harmonizing child malnutrition estimates. WHO has the mandate to monitor and report progress on the six global nutrition targets, endorsed in 2012 by the World Health Assembly, amongst them, three on child malnutrition, namely stunting, wasting and overweight (SDG 2.2.1, 2.2.2a and 2.2.b).
Associated resolutions	WHA65.6
Notes	The WHO Multicentre Growth Reference Study (MGRS) (WHO 2006) was undertaken to generate a growth standard for assessing the growth and development of infants and young children around the world. The MGRS collected primary growth data and related information from children from widely different ethnic backgrounds and cultural settings (Brazil, Ghana, India, Norway, Oman, and the USA). The resulting growth standard can be applied to all children everywhere, regardless of ethnicity, socioeconomic status and type of feeding.

Data sources

Data collection process	WHO data gathering strongly relies on the organization’s structure and network established over the past 30 years, since the creation of its global database, the WHO Global Database on Child Growth and Malnutrition
Preferred data sources	For the majority of countries, nationally representative household surveys constitute the primary data source used to generate the JME global estimates. For a limited number of countries data from surveillance systems are also used as a primary data source for generation of the JME global estimates if sufficient population coverage is documented (about 80%). For both types of primary data sources, theLast updated: 2022-11-22child’s length/height and weight measurements have to be collected following recommended standard measuring techniques.
Expected frequency of data collection	Data sources are updated in a continuous base to feed into the annual production of global and regional estimates and updated country level dataset released every March
Data providers	Majority of the data sources used are nationally representative household surveys e.g., Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS), Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) and National Nutrition Surveys (NNS). Data providers vary and most commonly are ministries of health, national offices of statistics or national institutes of nutrition.
Data compilers	World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), World Bank

Copyright and Licensing

Copyright	Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
License	The World Health Organization (“WHO”) encourages public access and use of the data that it collects and publishes on its web site data.who.int. The data are organized in datasets and made available in machine-readable format (“Datasets”). The Datasets have been compiled from data provided by WHO’s Member States under the WHO policy on the use and sharing of data collected by WHO in Member States outside the context of public health emergencies. Use of the data derived from the Datasets, which may appear in formats such as tables and charts, is also subject to these Terms and Conditions. Datasets may include data describing the Dataset called “Metadata”. If any datasets are credited to a source other than WHO, then those materials are not covered by these Terms and Conditions, and permission should be sought from the source provided. You are responsible for determining if this is the case, and if so, you are responsible for obtaining any necessary permission from the sources indicated. The risk of claims resulting from infringement of any third-party-owned component in the materials rests solely with you. You may use our application programming interfaces (“APIs”) to facilitate access to the Datasets, whether through a separate web site or through another type of software application. By using the Datasets or any presentations of data derived from them, or by using our APIs in connection with the Datasets, you agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions, as may be amended from time to time by WHO at its sole discretion. Unless specifically indicated otherwise, these Datasets are provided to you under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), with the additional terms below.  The basic terms applicable to the CC BY 4.0 license may be accessed here. By downloading or using the Datasets, you agree to comply with the terms of the CC BY 4.0 license, as well as the following mandatory and binding addition: Any dispute relating to the interpretation or application of this license shall, unless amicably settled, be subject to conciliation. In the event of failure of the latter, the dispute shall be settled by arbitration. The arbitration shall be conducted in accordance with the modalities to be agreed upon by the parties or, in the absence of agreement, with the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules. The parties shall accept the arbitral award as final.
Permission type	Publicly
Prohibited uses	You shall not attempt to de-anonymise the Datasets or use the Datasets in a manner that falsifies or misrepresents their content. You shall not, in connection with your use of the Datasets published on data.who.int, state or imply that WHO endorses, or is affiliated with, you, or that WHO endorses your use of data.who.int, or any content, output, or analysis resulting from or related to the data.who.int, or any entity, organization, company, product or services.
Citation	World Health Organization 2024 data.who.int, Prevalence of stunting in children under 5 (%) [Indicator]. https://data.who.int/indicators/i/A5A7413/5F8A486 (Accessed on 27 November 2024)
Disclaimer	WHO reserves the right at any time and from time to time to modify or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the Datasets, or any means of accessing or utilizing the Datasets with or without prior notice to you. Maps The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of WHO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Dotted and dashed lines on maps represent approximate border lines for which there may not yet be full agreement. All references to Kosovo should be understood to be in the context of the United Nations Security Council resolution 1244 (1999). A dispute exists between the Governments of Argentina and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland concerning sovereignty over the Falkland Islands (Malvinas). The mention of specific companies or of certain manufacturers’ products does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by WHO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. Errors and omissions excepted, the names of proprietary products are distinguished by initial capital letters. All reasonable precautions have been taken by WHO to verify the accuracy of the Datasets. However, the Datasets are being provided without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied. You will be solely responsible for your use of the Datasets. In no event shall WHO be liable for any damages arising from such use. For full disclaimers, terms of use and your indemnification of WHO, please visit Terms and conditions.

Prevalence of stunting in children under 5 (%)