Malnutrition: Number of children who are stunted in Malaysia
Malaysia: Malnutrition: Number of children who are stunted was 540,700 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Malnutrition: Number of children who are stunted in Malaysia, 2000–2024
Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2024, malnutrition: number of children who are stunted in Malaysia stood at 540,700.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.4% on the previous year and up 11.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, malnutrition: number of children who are stunted in Malaysia peaked at 568,400 in 2019 and was at its lowest, 448,500, in 2011.
Malaysia ranks 45th of 162 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.
Malnutrition: Number of children who are stunted in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 511,700 | — |
| 2001 | 498,200 | -2.6% |
| 2002 | 489,400 | -1.8% |
| 2003 | 484,000 | -1.1% |
| 2004 | 480,700 | -0.7% |
| 2005 | 480,000 | -0.1% |
| 2006 | 478,400 | -0.3% |
| 2007 | 474,800 | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 468,400 | -1.3% |
| 2009 | 460,900 | -1.6% |
| 2010 | 451,900 | -2.0% |
| 2011 | 448,500 | -0.8% |
| 2012 | 452,800 | +1.0% |
| 2013 | 465,100 | +2.7% |
| 2014 | 483,900 | +4.0% |
| 2015 | 506,700 | +4.7% |
| 2016 | 530,600 | +4.7% |
| 2017 | 550,400 | +3.7% |
| 2018 | 563,800 | +2.4% |
| 2019 | 568,400 | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 562,200 | -1.1% |
| 2021 | 550,200 | -2.1% |
| 2022 | 541,900 | -1.5% |
| 2023 | 538,400 | -0.6% |
| 2024 | 540,700 | +0.4% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 540,700 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 46,050, 11.7× the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 540,700 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 47,600, 11.4× the median. (27 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 482,650 | 460,900 | 511,700 | 10 |
| 2010s | 502,210 | 448,500 | 568,400 | 10 |
| 2020s | 546,680 | 538,400 | 562,200 | 5 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More reference data data for Malaysia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.7102 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.5869 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 4.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.1487 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 4.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 2.38 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.64 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 3.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 21.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.8098 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is malnutrition: number of children who are stunted in Malaysia?
- Malnutrition: number of children who are stunted in Malaysia was 540,700 in 2024, according to World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest malnutrition: number of children who are stunted recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 568,400 in 2019.
- What is the lowest malnutrition: number of children who are stunted recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 448,500 in 2011.
- How does Malaysia rank for malnutrition: number of children who are stunted?
- Malaysia ranks 45th out of 162 countries with data for 2024.
- Is malnutrition: number of children who are stunted rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malaysia 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 Malnutrition: Number of children who are stunted. 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
The number of children younger than five who are stunted – significantly shorter than the average for their age, as a consequence of poor nutrition or repeated infection.