Share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Namibia

Namibia: Share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished was 30 percent in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
30 percent
Change on year
down 5.7%
World rank
8th
of 125 countries
All-time high
33 percent
in 2021
All-time low
28.9 percent
in 2015
Years of data
9
2015–2023

Share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Namibia, 2015–2023

01020302015201920232015: 28.9 percent2016: 29.6 percent2017: 30.5 percent2018: 31.3 percent2019: 32.1 percent2020: 32.6 percent2021: 33 percent2022: 31.8 percent2023: 30 percent

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in percent.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Namibia is 30 percent, measured in 2023.

That represents a change of down 5.7% on the previous year and up 3.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Namibia peaked at 33 percent in 2021 and was at its lowest, 28.9 percent, in 2015.

Namibia ranks 8th of 125 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 30.48 percent 28.9 percent 32.1 percent 5
2020s 31.85 percent 30 percent 33 percent 4

Countries ranked near Namibia

  1. 5 Liberia 37.1 percent compare
  2. 6 Sierra Leone 33.7 percent compare
  3. 7 Afghanistan 31 percent compare
  4. 9 Kenya 28.1 percent compare
  5. 10 Jamaica 27.8 percent compare
  6. 11 Botswana 26.1 percent compare

See the full ranking of 125 places →

More reference data data for Namibia

All data for Namibia →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Namibia?
Share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Namibia was 30 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 Namibia?
The highest recorded value was 33 percent in 2021.
What is the lowest share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished recorded in Namibia?
The lowest recorded value was 28.9 percent in 2015.
How does Namibia rank for share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished?
Namibia ranks 8th out of 125 countries with data for 2023.
Is share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished rising or falling in Namibia?
Over the last ten years it is up 3.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Namibia 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.

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About this data

Indicator
Share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished
Unit
percent
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
125 places, 1,042 data points, 2015–2023
Last refreshed

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.