Malnutrition: Number of children who are stunted in Nigeria
Nigeria: Malnutrition: Number of children who are stunted was 11.44 million in 2024. ▲ Rising
Malnutrition: Number of children who are stunted in Nigeria, 2000–2024
Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Nigeria recorded 11.44 million for malnutrition: number of children who are stunted in 2024.
That represents a change of up 1.4% on the previous year and down 2.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, malnutrition: number of children who are stunted in Nigeria peaked at 11.75 million in 2015 and was at its lowest, 9.29 million, in 2000.
Nigeria ranks 2nd of 162 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Malnutrition: Number of children who are stunted in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 9.29 million | — |
| 2001 | 9.55 million | +2.8% |
| 2002 | 9.82 million | +2.9% |
| 2003 | 10.09 million | +2.8% |
| 2004 | 10.34 million | +2.5% |
| 2005 | 10.57 million | +2.2% |
| 2006 | 10.78 million | +2.0% |
| 2007 | 10.95 million | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 11.10 million | +1.3% |
| 2009 | 11.22 million | +1.1% |
| 2010 | 11.32 million | +0.9% |
| 2011 | 11.42 million | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 11.52 million | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 11.62 million | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 11.70 million | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 11.75 million | +0.4% |
| 2016 | 11.74 million | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 11.64 million | -0.8% |
| 2018 | 11.50 million | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 11.32 million | -1.5% |
| 2020 | 11.16 million | -1.4% |
| 2021 | 11.09 million | -0.6% |
| 2022 | 11.18 million | +0.8% |
| 2023 | 11.28 million | +0.9% |
| 2024 | 11.44 million | +1.4% |
Nigeria compared with similar countries
- Nigeria's 11.44 million is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 281,700, 40.6× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Nigeria's 11.44 million is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 577,800, 19.8× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 10.37 million | 9.29 million | 11.22 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 11.55 million | 11.32 million | 11.75 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 11.23 million | 11.09 million | 11.44 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More reference data data for Nigeria
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.77 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 19.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 5.94 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 5.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 81.9 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 121.16 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 14.27 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is malnutrition: number of children who are stunted in Nigeria?
- Malnutrition: number of children who are stunted in Nigeria was 11.44 million 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 Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 11.75 million in 2015.
- What is the lowest malnutrition: number of children who are stunted recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.29 million in 2000.
- How does Nigeria rank for malnutrition: number of children who are stunted?
- Nigeria ranks 2nd out of 162 countries with data for 2024.
- Is malnutrition: number of children who are stunted rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nigeria 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.