Share of adults who are overweight or obese in Eritrea
Eritrea: Share of adults who are overweight or obese was 14.3% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of adults who are overweight or obese in Eritrea, 1980–2024
Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, share of adults who are overweight or obese in Eritrea stood at 14.3%. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
The figure is up 2.6% on the previous year and up 27.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of adults who are overweight or obese in Eritrea peaked at 14.3% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 6.1%, in 1980.
Eritrea ranks 198th of 199 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Share of adults who are overweight or obese in Eritrea, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 6.1% | — |
| 1981 | 6.2% | +1.2% |
| 1982 | 6.3% | +1.3% |
| 1983 | 6.3% | +1.4% |
| 1984 | 6.4% | +1.5% |
| 1985 | 6.5% | +1.5% |
| 1986 | 6.6% | +1.6% |
| 1987 | 6.8% | +1.6% |
| 1988 | 6.9% | +1.7% |
| 1989 | 7.0% | +1.7% |
| 1990 | 7.1% | +1.7% |
| 1991 | 7.2% | +1.7% |
| 1992 | 7.4% | +1.7% |
| 1993 | 7.5% | +1.7% |
| 1994 | 7.6% | +1.7% |
| 1995 | 7.7% | +1.7% |
| 1996 | 7.9% | +1.8% |
| 1997 | 8.0% | +2.0% |
| 1998 | 8.2% | +2.1% |
| 1999 | 8.4% | +2.2% |
| 2000 | 8.6% | +2.2% |
| 2001 | 8.8% | +2.1% |
| 2002 | 8.9% | +2.1% |
| 2003 | 9.1% | +2.0% |
| 2004 | 9.3% | +1.9% |
| 2005 | 9.5% | +1.9% |
| 2006 | 9.6% | +1.8% |
| 2007 | 9.8% | +1.7% |
| 2008 | 10.0% | +1.6% |
| 2009 | 10.1% | +1.7% |
| 2010 | 10.3% | +1.8% |
| 2011 | 10.5% | +1.9% |
| 2012 | 10.7% | +2.1% |
| 2013 | 11.0% | +2.2% |
| 2014 | 11.2% | +2.4% |
| 2015 | 11.5% | +2.4% |
| 2016 | 11.8% | +2.4% |
| 2017 | 12.1% | +2.5% |
| 2018 | 12.4% | +2.5% |
| 2019 | 12.7% | +2.4% |
| 2020 | 13.0% | +2.4% |
| 2021 | 13.3% | +2.4% |
| 2022 | 13.6% | +2.5% |
| 2023 | 14.0% | +2.5% |
| 2024 | 14.3% | +2.6% |
Eritrea compared with similar countries
- Eritrea's 14.3% is below the median for low income countries, which is 26.6%, 54% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Eritrea's 14.3% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 33.6%, 43% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 6.5% | 6.1% | 7.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 7.7% | 7.1% | 8.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 9.4% | 8.6% | 10.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 11.4% | 10.3% | 12.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.6% | 13.0% | 14.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Eritrea
- 195 Madagascar 18.1% compare
- 196 East Timor 17.2% compare
- 197 Burundi 16.9% compare
- 199 Ethiopia 11.2% compare
More reference data data for Eritrea
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0531 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.46 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.57 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0485 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.57 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1781 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.073 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 6.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 7.36 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.2642 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of adults who are overweight or obese in Eritrea?
- Share of adults who are overweight or obese in Eritrea was 14.3% in 2024, according to World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of adults who are overweight or obese recorded in Eritrea?
- The highest recorded value was 14.3% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of adults who are overweight or obese recorded in Eritrea?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.1% in 1980.
- How does Eritrea rank for share of adults who are overweight or obese?
- Eritrea ranks 198th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of adults who are overweight or obese rising or falling in Eritrea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 27.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Eritrea data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of adults who are overweight or obese. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Overweight is defined here as a body mass index (BMI) above 25. BMI is a person's weight in kilograms divided by the square of their height in meters.