Exclusive breastfeeding rate by country
The share of infants less than six months old who were fed only with breast milk in the past 24 hours. WHO and UNICEF recommend that children be exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months of life – meaning no other foods or liquids are provided, including water.
What the numbers show
Exclusive breastfeeding rate is currently reported for 72 countries. The highest value is 80.9% in Sri Lanka; the lowest is 4.6% in Dominican Republic.
The median across all reporting countries is 44.2%, and the mean is 45.4%.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 18.
Over the past decade 58 countries rose and 14 fell. The largest increase was in Somalia (up 535.8%), and the largest decrease in Dominican Republic (down 54.1%).
Exclusive breastfeeding rate: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sri Lanka | 80.9% | 2016 | up 6.8% | volatile |
| 2 | Rwanda | 80.9% | 2020 | down 4.7% | flat |
| 3 | Burundi | 71.9% | 2019 | up 3.8% | rising |
| 4 | Zambia | 69.9% | 2018 | up 16.7% | volatile |
| 5 | Uganda | 65.5% | 2016 | up 10.9% | flat |
| 6 | Peru | 65.3% | 2019 | down 4.3% | rising |
| 7 | Cambodia | 65.2% | 2014 | up 8.6% | volatile |
| 8 | East Timor | 65.0% | 2020 | up 28.0% | rising |
| 9 | Togo | 64.3% | 2017 | up 125.0% | volatile |
| 10 | Eswatini | 63.8% | 2014 | up 100.1% | rising |
| 11 | Sao Tome and Principe | 63.1% | 2019 | up 25.4% | rising |
| 12 | Bangladesh | 62.6% | 2019 | up 45.8% | rising |
| 13 | Nepal | 62.1% | 2019 | down 10.8% | falling |
| 14 | Kenya | 61.4% | 2014 | up 403.4% | volatile |
| 15 | Malawi | 59.4% | 2016 | up 4.8% | rising |
| 16 | Guinea-Bissau | 59.3% | 2019 | up 55.0% | rising |
| 17 | Lesotho | 59.0% | 2018 | up 11.5% | rising |
| 18 | Ethiopia | 58.8% | 2019 | up 13.2% | rising |
| 19 | India | 58.0% | 2018 | up 25.1% | rising |
| 19 | Mongolia | 58.0% | 2020 | down 11.7% | flat |
| 21 | Burkina Faso | 57.9% | 2019 | up 261.8% | volatile |
| 22 | Tanzania | 57.8% | 2018 | up 18.6% | rising |
| 23 | Bolivia | 55.7% | 2016 | up 3.9% | rising |
| 24 | Liberia | 55.2% | 2020 | up 62.4% | rising |
| 25 | Philippines | 54.9% | 2018 | up 66.5% | rising |
| 26 | Sierra Leone | 54.0% | 2019 | up 419.2% | volatile |
| 27 | Gambia | 53.6% | 2020 | up 61.7% | rising |
| 28 | Democratic Republic of Congo | 53.6% | 2018 | up 49.8% | rising |
| 29 | Guatemala | 53.2% | 2015 | up 5.2% | rising |
| 30 | Indonesia | 50.7% | 2017 | up 62.3% | falling |
| 31 | Madagascar | 50.6% | 2018 | up 1.0% | flat |
| 32 | Uzbekistan | 49.5% | 2017 | up 108.0% | volatile |
| 33 | Namibia | 48.3% | 2013 | up 191.1% | rising |
| 34 | Pakistan | 47.8% | 2019 | up 29.2% | rising |
| 35 | El Salvador | 46.7% | 2014 | up 94.7% | rising |
| 36 | Kyrgyzstan | 45.6% | 2018 | up 28.0% | rising |
| 37 | Ghana | 42.9% | 2018 | down 30.9% | volatile |
| 38 | Zimbabwe | 41.9% | 2019 | up 61.5% | rising |
| 39 | Benin | 41.4% | 2018 | down 3.7% | rising |
| 40 | Mozambique | 41.0% | 2014 | up 42.8% | rising |
| 41 | Senegal | 40.8% | 2019 | up 4.7% | rising |
| 42 | Turkey | 40.7% | 2019 | down 2.2% | volatile |
| 43 | Cuba | 40.6% | 2019 | down 16.3% | rising |
| 44 | Mali | 40.5% | 2019 | up 100.7% | rising |
| 45 | Mauritania | 40.3% | 2018 | up 153.5% | rising |
| 46 | Haiti | 39.9% | 2017 | down 1.6% | volatile |
| 47 | Egypt | 39.5% | 2014 | up 30.1% | falling |
| 48 | Cameroon | 39.4% | 2019 | up 97.6% | rising |
| 49 | Palestine | 38.9% | 2020 | up 35.4% | rising |
| 50 | Kazakhstan | 37.8% | 2015 | up 131.5% | rising |
| 51 | Colombia | 36.7% | 2016 | down 21.6% | rising |
| 52 | Albania | 36.5% | 2018 | down 1.6% | volatile |
| 53 | Central African Republic | 36.2% | 2019 | up 5.4% | rising |
| 54 | Tajikistan | 35.8% | 2017 | up 43.6% | rising |
| 55 | Morocco | 35.0% | 2018 | up 25.9% | falling |
| 56 | Somalia | 33.7% | 2019 | up 535.8% | volatile |
| 57 | Guinea | 33.4% | 2018 | down 30.3% | rising |
| 58 | Paraguay | 29.6% | 2016 | up 35.1% | rising |
| 59 | Nigeria | 28.7% | 2018 | up 128.6% | rising |
| 60 | North Macedonia | 27.5% | 2019 | up 19.5% | volatile |
| 61 | Mexico | 27.1% | 2019 | up 45.7% | flat |
| 62 | United States | 25.8% | 2018 | up 10.9% | rising |
| 63 | Jordan | 25.4% | 2018 | up 16.8% | falling |
| 64 | Vietnam | 24.0% | 2014 | up 54.6% | rising |
| 65 | Serbia | 23.6% | 2019 | up 75.8% | rising |
| 66 | Cote d'Ivoire | 23.1% | 2016 | up 452.3% | volatile |
| 67 | Niger | 21.6% | 2019 | up 118.3% | volatile |
| 68 | Guyana | 21.1% | 2014 | up 0.5% | rising |
| 69 | Chad | 16.2% | 2019 | up 404.1% | volatile |
| 70 | Thailand | 14.0% | 2019 | down 7.3% | volatile |
| 71 | Tunisia | 13.5% | 2018 | up 118.5% | volatile |
| 72 | Dominican Republic | 4.6% | 2014 | down 54.1% | falling |
About this data
The share of infants less than six months old who were fed only with breast milk in the past 24 hours. WHO and UNICEF recommend that children be exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months of life – meaning no other foods or liquids are provided, including water.