Share of children who are overweight or obese in Kenya
Kenya: Share of children who are overweight or obese was 4.3% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Share of children who are overweight or obese in Kenya, 2000–2024
Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, share of children who are overweight or obese in Kenya stood at 4.3%.
That represents a change of up 7.5% on the previous year and down 4.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who are overweight or obese in Kenya peaked at 7.1% in 2001 and was at its lowest, 3.7%, in 2019.
That places Kenya 110th out of 163 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Share of children who are overweight or obese in Kenya, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 7.0% | — |
| 2001 | 7.1% | +1.4% |
| 2002 | 7.1% | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 7.1% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 7.1% | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 6.9% | -2.8% |
| 2006 | 6.7% | -2.9% |
| 2007 | 6.5% | -3.0% |
| 2008 | 6.2% | -4.6% |
| 2009 | 5.9% | -4.8% |
| 2010 | 5.6% | -5.1% |
| 2011 | 5.3% | -5.4% |
| 2012 | 5.0% | -5.7% |
| 2013 | 4.7% | -6.0% |
| 2014 | 4.5% | -4.3% |
| 2015 | 4.2% | -6.7% |
| 2016 | 4.0% | -4.8% |
| 2017 | 3.9% | -2.5% |
| 2018 | 3.8% | -2.6% |
| 2019 | 3.7% | -2.6% |
| 2020 | 3.7% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 3.7% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 3.8% | +2.7% |
| 2023 | 4.0% | +5.3% |
| 2024 | 4.3% | +7.5% |
Kenya compared with similar countries
- Kenya's 4.3% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 4.5%, 95% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Kenya's 4.3% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 4.2%, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 6.8% | 5.9% | 7.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.5% | 3.7% | 5.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.9% | 3.7% | 4.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
- 110 South Sudan 4.3% compare
- 112 Azerbaijan 4.2% compare
- 112 Democratic Republic of Congo 4.2% compare
- 112 Honduras 4.2% compare
- 112 Morocco 4.2% compare
- 112 Uganda 4.2% compare
More reference data data for Kenya
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5379 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 12.22 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 14.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.377 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 14.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 58.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 68.95 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.05 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children who are overweight or obese in Kenya?
- Share of children who are overweight or obese in Kenya was 4.3% in 2024, according to World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children who are overweight or obese recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 7.1% in 2001.
- What is the lowest share of children who are overweight or obese recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.7% in 2019.
- How does Kenya rank for share of children who are overweight or obese?
- Kenya ranks 110th out of 163 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children who are overweight or obese rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Kenya data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children who are overweight or obese. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of children under five years old that are defined as overweight or obese. A child is classified as overweight if their weight-for-height is more than two standard deviations from the median of the World Health Organization (WHO) Child Growth Standards.