Malnutrition: Number of children who are stunted in Zambia
Zambia: Malnutrition: Number of children who are stunted was 1.04 million in 2024. ▼ Falling
Malnutrition: Number of children who are stunted in Zambia, 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 Zambia stood at 1.04 million.
That represents a change of up 2.6% on the previous year and down 3.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, malnutrition: number of children who are stunted in Zambia peaked at 1.12 million in 2009 and was at its lowest, 960,700, in 2020.
Zambia ranks 30th of 162 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Malnutrition: Number of children who are stunted in Zambia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 989,000 | — |
| 2001 | 1.01 million | +2.3% |
| 2002 | 1.03 million | +2.1% |
| 2003 | 1.05 million | +1.6% |
| 2004 | 1.06 million | +1.4% |
| 2005 | 1.08 million | +1.4% |
| 2006 | 1.10 million | +1.4% |
| 2007 | 1.11 million | +1.0% |
| 2008 | 1.11 million | +0.7% |
| 2009 | 1.12 million | +0.2% |
| 2010 | 1.11 million | -0.4% |
| 2011 | 1.10 million | -0.9% |
| 2012 | 1.09 million | -1.0% |
| 2013 | 1.08 million | -0.9% |
| 2014 | 1.07 million | -0.9% |
| 2015 | 1.06 million | -1.1% |
| 2016 | 1.04 million | -1.7% |
| 2017 | 1.02 million | -2.3% |
| 2018 | 991,300 | -2.4% |
| 2019 | 971,800 | -2.0% |
| 2020 | 960,700 | -1.1% |
| 2021 | 963,900 | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 984,800 | +2.2% |
| 2023 | 1.01 million | +2.5% |
| 2024 | 1.04 million | +2.6% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 1.04 million is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 281,700, 3.7× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 1.04 million is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 577,800, 1.8× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 1.07 million | 989,000 | 1.12 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.05 million | 971,800 | 1.11 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 990,980 | 960,700 | 1.04 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
More reference data data for Zambia
- Exchange rate, new LCU per USD extended backward, period average 18.94 (2026)
- Exchange rate, old LCU per USD extended forward, period average 18.94 (2026)
- Official exchange rate, LCU per USD, period average 18.94 (2026)
- Global number of reported disasters by size, gaps filled 0 events (2025)
- Annual precipitation, annual growth rate 40.84 % change on previous year (2025)
- Free country, gaps filled 1 (2025)
- Civil liberties rating, gaps filled 4 (2025)
- Civil liberties rating, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Civil liberties rating, per capita 0 units per person (2025)
- Consumer price index 483.32 2010 = 100 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is malnutrition: number of children who are stunted in Zambia?
- Malnutrition: number of children who are stunted in Zambia was 1.04 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 Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 1.12 million in 2009.
- What is the lowest malnutrition: number of children who are stunted recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 960,700 in 2020.
- How does Zambia rank for malnutrition: number of children who are stunted?
- Zambia ranks 30th out of 162 countries with data for 2024.
- Is malnutrition: number of children who are stunted rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Zambia 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.