Country rankings

Malnutrition Rate by Country

Somalia has the highest Undernourishment Rate in 2023 (51.3%), followed by Haiti (50.4%) and Madagascar (39.7%). Seychelles has the lowest (2.5%).

Health174 countries · 2 metricsUpdated Sep 23, 2024Original page
1 source
170 of 235 countries
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Undernourishment Rate, 2023

Green is better, red is worse (lower is better). Click a place to highlight it.

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Ranking

Best first: the first 15 and last 5 of 170 countries.

Distribution Median and middle halfThe median is the middle value: half of places are above it, half below. The middle half is the range holding the central 50% of places.More in the glossary →

Each dot is one country; the lines mark the median and the middle half.

Median
5.4%
Middle half 2.5% – 13.4%
Average
10.3%
170 countries
Lowest (best)
2.5%
China
Highest (worst)
51.3%
Somalia

Over time · 2011–2023

The top 5 in 2023, against the median.

  • Median of all countries
  • China
  • United States
  • Russia
  • Turkey
  • Germany

Data

Click a column to sort, a row to highlight that place on the charts.

170 countries · # = rank by Undernourishment Rate
#
1China2.5%
1United States2.5%
1Russia2.5%
1Turkey2.5%
1Germany2.5%
1United Kingdom2.5%
1France2.5%
1Italy2.5%
1South Korea2.5%
1Algeria2.5%
1Spain2.5%
1Canada2.5%
1Poland2.5%
1Uzbekistan2.5%
1Malaysia2.5%
1Australia2.5%
1Kazakhstan2.5%
1Chile2.5%
1Romania2.5%
1Netherlands2.5%
1Belgium2.5%
1Cuba2.5%
1Sweden2.5%
1Czechia2.5%
1Azerbaijan2.5%
1Portugal2.5%
1Greece2.5%
1Israel2.5%
1Hungary2.5%
1Austria2.5%
1Switzerland2.5%
1Belarus2.5%
1Hong Kong2.5%
1Bulgaria2.5%
1Serbia2.5%
1Denmark2.5%
1Norway2.5%
1Finland2.5%
1Ireland2.5%
1New Zealand2.5%
1Costa Rica2.5%
1Kuwait2.5%
1Croatia2.5%
1Mongolia2.5%
1Uruguay2.5%
1Bosnia and Herzegovina2.5%
1Moldova2.5%
1Armenia2.5%
1Lithuania2.5%
1Slovenia2.5%
1Latvia2.5%
1North Macedonia2.5%
1Cyprus2.5%
1Estonia2.5%
1Guyana2.5%
1Luxembourg2.5%
1Montenegro2.5%
1Malta2.5%
1Iceland2.5%
1Seychelles2.5%
61United Arab Emirates2.7%
62Saudi Arabia3%
63Mexico3.1%
64Argentina3.2%
64Tunisia3.2%
66Japan3.4%
67Barbados3.5%
68Slovakia3.6%
69Taiwan3.7%
69Kiribati3.7%
71Brazil3.9%
72Georgia4%
73Sri Lanka4.1%
73Turkmenistan4.1%
75Colombia4.2%
76Paraguay4.5%
76Albania4.5%
78Senegal4.6%
78Cambodia4.6%
78Dominican Republic4.6%
78Belize4.6%
82Saint Vincent and the Grenadines4.8%
83Vietnam5.2%
84Myanmar5.3%
85Laos5.4%
85French Polynesia5.4%
85Samoa5.4%
88Thailand5.6%
88Panama5.6%
88New Caledonia5.6%
91Cameroon5.7%
91Nepal5.7%
91Oman5.7%
94Ukraine5.8%
95Philippines5.9%
95Mauritius5.9%
97Kyrgyzstan6.1%
98Ghana6.2%
99Iran6.5%
100El Salvador6.8%
101Morocco6.9%
102Peru7%
103Indonesia7.2%
104Jamaica7.3%
105Fiji7.8%
106Vanuatu7.9%
107South Africa8.1%
108Egypt8.5%
109Tajikistan8.7%
110Mauritania9.3%
111Ivory Coast9.6%
111Mali9.6%
111Lebanon9.6%
114Suriname10.1%
115Guinea10.3%
115Benin10.3%
117Macau10.7%
118Sudan11.4%
118Libya11.4%
120Bangladesh11.9%
121Eswatini12.4%
122Guatemala12.6%
122Trinidad and Tobago12.6%
122Cape Verde12.6%
125Togo12.8%
126Djibouti12.9%
127Niger13.3%
128Dominica13.4%
129India13.7%
130Ecuador13.9%
131Burkina Faso15.4%
132Timor-Leste15.9%
133Iraq16.1%
134Sao Tome and Principe16.4%
135Venezuela17.6%
136Jordan17.9%
137Nigeria18.0%
138Solomon Islands19.4%
139Nicaragua19.6%
140Malawi19.9%
141Gabon20.1%
142Honduras20.4%
143Gambia20.5%
144Pakistan20.7%
145Ethiopia22.2%
145Namibia22.2%
147Bolivia23.0%
148Angola23.2%
149Central African Republic23.5%
150Tanzania23.8%
151Botswana24.3%
152Mozambique24.8%
153Republic of the Congo26.8%
154Papua New Guinea27.7%
155Sierra Leone28.4%
156Afghanistan30.4%
157Rwanda31.4%
158Guinea-Bissau32.2%
159Syria34.0%
160Kenya34.5%
161Chad35.1%
162Zambia35.4%
163Uganda36.9%
164DR Congo37.0%
165Zimbabwe38.1%
166Liberia38.4%
167Yemen39.5%
168Madagascar39.7%
169Haiti50.4%
170Somalia51.3%

What correlates with Undernourishment Rate (2023)?

Pearson r against 1,460 other country metrics sharing at least 102 countries. Correlation is not causation.

Higher together

Places that have a higher Undernourishment Rate tend to score higher on these

  1. Global Hunger IndexGlobal Hunger Index by Country
    r = +0.87 · very strong · n = 126
    Plot
  2. % of Pop. Living on Less Than $3.65 USD/DayPoverty Rate by Country
    r = +0.79 · very strong · n = 145
    Plot
  3. Economic InequalityFailed States
    r = +0.74 · very strong · n = 160
    Plot
  4. Public ServicesFailed States
    r = +0.74 · very strong · n = 160
    Plot
  5. Crude Birth Rate (UN)Birth Rate by Country
    r = +0.72 · very strong · n = 167
    Plot
  6. Infant Deaths per 1,000 BirthsHealth Indicators by Country (World Bank)
    r = +0.72 · very strong · n = 165
    Plot

Opposite directions

Places that have a higher Undernourishment Rate tend to score lower on these

  1. Nutrition & Medical CareSocial Progress Index by Country
    r = −0.83 · very strong · n = 158
    Plot
  2. Basic NeedsSocial Progress Index by Country
    r = −0.82 · very strong · n = 158
    Plot
  3. ICT Development IndexICT Development Index by Country
    r = −0.80 · very strong · n = 145
    Plot
  4. Internet Users (% of People)Development Indicators by Country (World Bank)
    r = −0.79 · very strong · n = 158
    Plot
  5. Water & SanitationSocial Progress Index by Country
    r = −0.77 · very strong · n = 158
    Plot
  6. % of Pop. Using Internet (ITU)Internet Users by Country
    r = −0.76 · very strong · n = 169
    Plot

Quick answers

Which country has the highest Undernourishment Rate?
Somalia has the highest Undernourishment Rate in 2023, at 51.3%, followed by Haiti (50.4%) and Madagascar (39.7%).
Which country has the lowest Undernourishment Rate?
Seychelles has the lowest Undernourishment Rate in 2023, at 2.5%.
What is the median Undernourishment Rate across countries?
The median is 5.4% across the 170 countries with data in 2023.
Where does this malnutrition rate by country data come from?
Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: Suite of Food Security Indicators - FAOSTAT.