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

Uganda: Share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished was 14.9 percent in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
14.9 percent
Change on year
down 15.8%
World rank
28th
of 125 countries
All-time high
25.6 percent
in 2017
All-time low
14.9 percent
in 2023
Years of data
9
2015–2023

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

01020302015201920232015: 21.5 percent2016: 24 percent2017: 25.6 percent2018: 24.9 percent2019: 23.4 percent2020: 22.1 percent2021: 20.7 percent2022: 17.7 percent2023: 14.9 percent

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

Analysis

Uganda recorded 14.9 percent for share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 9 years on record.

That represents a change of down 15.8% on the previous year and down 30.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Uganda peaked at 25.6 percent in 2017 and was at its lowest, 14.9 percent, in 2023.

That places Uganda 28th out of 125 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 23.88 percent 21.5 percent 25.6 percent 5
2020s 18.85 percent 14.9 percent 22.1 percent 4

Countries ranked near Uganda

  1. 25 El Salvador 15.4 percent compare
  2. 25 Honduras 15.4 percent compare
  3. 27 Benin 15 percent compare
  4. 29 Peru 14.5 percent compare
  5. 30 Mauritania 13.1 percent compare
  6. 31 Nepal 12.8 percent compare

See the full ranking of 125 places →

More reference data data for Uganda

All data for Uganda →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Uganda?
Share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished in Uganda was 14.9 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 Uganda?
The highest recorded value was 25.6 percent in 2017.
What is the lowest share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished recorded in Uganda?
The lowest recorded value was 14.9 percent in 2023.
How does Uganda rank for share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished?
Uganda ranks 28th out of 125 countries with data for 2023.
Is share of the population defined as severely food insecure vs. undernourished rising or falling in Uganda?
Over the last ten years it is down 30.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Uganda 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

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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.