Share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: Share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished was 19 percent in 2023. ▲ Rising
Share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Ethiopia, 2015–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in percent.
Analysis
In 2023, share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Ethiopia stood at 19 percent.
That represents a change of down 3.6% on the previous year and up 31.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Ethiopia peaked at 21.1 percent in 2021 and was at its lowest, 14.1 percent, in 2018.
That places Ethiopia 20th out of 125 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
Share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Ethiopia, year by year
| Year | percent | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 14.5 percent | — |
| 2016 | 15 percent | +3.4% |
| 2017 | 14.8 percent | -1.3% |
| 2018 | 14.1 percent | -4.7% |
| 2019 | 16.4 percent | +16.3% |
| 2020 | 19.6 percent | +19.5% |
| 2021 | 21.1 percent | +7.7% |
| 2022 | 19.7 percent | -6.6% |
| 2023 | 19 percent | -3.6% |
Ethiopia compared with similar countries
- Ethiopia's 19 percent is below the median for low income countries, which is 21.7 percent, 88% of the median. (15 countries reporting)
- Ethiopia's 19 percent is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 18.4 percent, 1.0× the median. (32 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 14.96 percent | 14.1 percent | 16.4 percent | 5 |
| 2020s | 19.85 percent | 19 percent | 21.1 percent | 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 share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Ethiopia?
- Share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Ethiopia was 19 percent 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 share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished recorded in Ethiopia?
- The highest recorded value was 21.1 percent in 2021.
- What is the lowest share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished recorded in Ethiopia?
- The lowest recorded value was 14.1 percent in 2018.
- How does Ethiopia rank for share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished?
- Ethiopia ranks 20th out of 125 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished rising or falling in Ethiopia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 31.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- 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 Share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 9 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Both metrics indicate that someone does not get enough food (in terms of calories) to eat: these metrics should be strongly correlated. Severe food insecurity is measured based on food security questionnaires among households. Undernourishment is based on estimates of actual calorie intake across the population.