Number of people who are undernourished in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: Number of people who are undernourished was 25.40 million millions in 2023. ▼ Falling
Number of people who are undernourished in Ethiopia, 2001–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in millions.
Analysis
The most recent figure for number of people who are undernourished in Ethiopia is 25.40 million millions, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of up 0.4% on the previous year and up 46.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of people who are undernourished in Ethiopia peaked at 32.10 million millions in 2001 and was at its lowest, 13.90 million millions, in 2016.
That places Ethiopia 6th out of 131 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 23 years of available data.
Number of people who are undernourished in Ethiopia, year by year
| Year | millions | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 32.10 million millions | — |
| 2002 | 30.90 million millions | -3.7% |
| 2003 | 30.70 million millions | -0.6% |
| 2004 | 29.70 million millions | -3.3% |
| 2005 | 28.50 million millions | -4.0% |
| 2006 | 26.40 million millions | -7.4% |
| 2007 | 24.40 million millions | -7.6% |
| 2008 | 22.50 million millions | -7.8% |
| 2009 | 21.00 million millions | -6.7% |
| 2010 | 20.30 million millions | -3.3% |
| 2011 | 19.70 million millions | -3.0% |
| 2012 | 18.90 million millions | -4.1% |
| 2013 | 17.40 million millions | -7.9% |
| 2014 | 15.30 million millions | -12.1% |
| 2015 | 14.10 million millions | -7.8% |
| 2016 | 13.90 million millions | -1.4% |
| 2017 | 15.50 million millions | +11.5% |
| 2018 | 18.10 million millions | +16.8% |
| 2019 | 21.50 million millions | +18.8% |
| 2020 | 24.10 million millions | +12.1% |
| 2021 | 25.20 million millions | +4.6% |
| 2022 | 25.30 million millions | +0.4% |
| 2023 | 25.40 million millions | +0.4% |
Ethiopia compared with similar countries
- Ethiopia's 25.40 million millions is above the median for low income countries, which is 5.30 million millions, 4.8× the median. (21 countries reporting)
- Ethiopia's 25.40 million millions is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 2.10 million millions, 12.1× the median. (43 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 27.36 million millions | 21.00 million millions | 32.10 million millions | 9 |
| 2010s | 17.47 million millions | 13.90 million millions | 21.50 million millions | 10 |
| 2020s | 25.00 million millions | 24.10 million millions | 25.40 million millions | 4 |
Countries ranked near Ethiopia
More reference data data for Ethiopia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.6564 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 20.69 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 25.11 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.37 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 25.11 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 2.2 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 100.94 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 121.79 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 7.47 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of people who are undernourished in Ethiopia?
- Number of people who are undernourished in Ethiopia was 25.40 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 Ethiopia?
- The highest recorded value was 32.10 million millions in 2001.
- What is the lowest number of people who are undernourished recorded in Ethiopia?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.90 million millions in 2016.
- How does Ethiopia rank for number of people who are undernourished?
- Ethiopia ranks 6th out of 131 countries with data for 2023.
- Is number of people who are undernourished rising or falling in Ethiopia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 46.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ethiopia 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 23 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
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.