Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight in Cambodia

Cambodia: Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight was 16.3% in 2021. ▼ Falling

Latest (2021)
16.3%
World rank
25th
of 96 countries
All-time high
42.6%
in 1996
All-time low
16.3%
in 2021
Years of data
7
1996–2021

Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight in Cambodia, 1996–2021

0102030401996200820211996: 42.6 % of children under 52000: 39.7 % of children under 52005: 28.3 % of children under 52008: 28.3 % of children under 52010: 28.9 % of children under 52014: 24.1 % of children under 52021: 16.3 % of children under 5

Source: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of children under 5.

Analysis

The most recent figure for malnutrition: share of children who are underweight in Cambodia is 16.3%, measured in 2021. That is the lowest value across all 7 years on record.

The figure is down 43.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, malnutrition: share of children who are underweight in Cambodia peaked at 42.6% in 1996 and was at its lowest, 16.3%, in 2021.

Cambodia ranks 25th of 96 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 42.6% 42.6% 42.6% 1
2000s 32.1% 28.3% 39.7% 3
2010s 26.5% 24.1% 28.9% 2
2020s 16.3% 16.3% 16.3% 1

Countries ranked near Cambodia

  1. 22 Sri Lanka 17.1% compare
  2. 23 Burkina Faso 16.9% compare
  3. 24 Philippines 16.7% compare
  4. 26 Senegal 16.2% compare
  5. 27 Indonesia 15.9% compare
  6. 28 Mozambique 15.4% compare

See the full ranking of 96 places →

More reference data data for Cambodia

All data for Cambodia →

Frequently asked questions

What is malnutrition: share of children who are underweight in Cambodia?
Malnutrition: share of children who are underweight in Cambodia was 16.3% in 2021, according to Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest malnutrition: share of children who are underweight recorded in Cambodia?
The highest recorded value was 42.6% in 1996.
What is the lowest malnutrition: share of children who are underweight recorded in Cambodia?
The lowest recorded value was 16.3% in 2021.
How does Cambodia rank for malnutrition: share of children who are underweight?
Cambodia ranks 25th out of 96 countries with data for 2021.
Is malnutrition: share of children who are underweight rising or falling in Cambodia?
Over the last ten years it is down 43.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Cambodia data come from?
The figures come from Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

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About this data

Indicator
Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight
Unit
% of children under 5
Source
Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
96 places, 957 data points, 1984–2024
Last refreshed

The share of children younger than five years old whose weight for age is more than two standard deviations below the median for the international reference population for ages 0-59 months.