Number of people who are undernourished in Democratic Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo: Number of people who are undernourished was 40.70 million millions in 2023. ▲ Rising
Number of people who are undernourished in Democratic Republic of Congo, 2001–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in millions.
Analysis
Democratic Republic of Congo recorded 40.70 million millions for number of people who are undernourished in 2023. That is the highest value across all 23 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 6.5% on the previous year and up 74.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of people who are undernourished in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at 40.70 million millions in 2023 and was at its lowest, 14.00 million millions, in 2001.
That places Democratic Republic of Congo 4th out of 131 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 23 years of available data.
Number of people who are undernourished in Democratic Republic of Congo, year by year
| Year | millions | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 14.00 million millions | — |
| 2002 | 14.60 million millions | +4.3% |
| 2003 | 15.10 million millions | +3.4% |
| 2004 | 15.60 million millions | +3.3% |
| 2005 | 16.10 million millions | +3.2% |
| 2006 | 16.60 million millions | +3.1% |
| 2007 | 17.20 million millions | +3.6% |
| 2008 | 17.90 million millions | +4.1% |
| 2009 | 18.90 million millions | +5.6% |
| 2010 | 19.70 million millions | +4.2% |
| 2011 | 21.00 million millions | +6.6% |
| 2012 | 22.30 million millions | +6.2% |
| 2013 | 23.30 million millions | +4.5% |
| 2014 | 24.40 million millions | +4.7% |
| 2015 | 25.70 million millions | +5.3% |
| 2016 | 27.10 million millions | +5.4% |
| 2017 | 28.40 million millions | +4.8% |
| 2018 | 29.30 million millions | +3.2% |
| 2019 | 31.70 million millions | +8.2% |
| 2020 | 33.80 million millions | +6.6% |
| 2021 | 36.30 million millions | +7.4% |
| 2022 | 38.20 million millions | +5.2% |
| 2023 | 40.70 million millions | +6.5% |
Democratic Republic of Congo compared with similar countries
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 40.70 million millions is above the median for low income countries, which is 5.30 million millions, 7.7× the median. (21 countries reporting)
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 40.70 million millions is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 2.10 million millions, 19.4× the median. (43 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 16.22 million millions | 14.00 million millions | 18.90 million millions | 9 |
| 2010s | 25.29 million millions | 19.70 million millions | 31.70 million millions | 10 |
| 2020s | 37.25 million millions | 33.80 million millions | 40.70 million millions | 4 |
Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo
More reference data data for Democratic Republic of Congo
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.18 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Manure Management 220.65 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - IPCC Agriculture 3,924 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - IPCC Agriculture 3,062 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 9.9 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Manure left on Pasture 1,764 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Manure applied to Soils 313.43 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Burning - Crop residues 0.2179 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - Manure applied 313.43 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Enteric 3,057 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of people who are undernourished in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Number of people who are undernourished in Democratic Republic of Congo was 40.70 million millions in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of people who are undernourished recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The highest recorded value was 40.70 million millions in 2023.
- What is the lowest number of people who are undernourished recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was 14.00 million millions in 2001.
- How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for number of people who are undernourished?
- Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 4th out of 131 countries with data for 2023.
- Is number of people who are undernourished rising or falling in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Over the last ten years it is up 74.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Democratic Republic of Congo data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of people who are undernourished. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Undernourishment is measured as having a caloric intake that is insufficient to meet the minimum energy requirements necessary for a given individual.