Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight in Eswatini

Eswatini: Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight was 5.0% in 2021. ▼ Falling

Latest (2021)
5.0%
World rank
60th
of 96 countries
All-time high
9.1%
in 2000
All-time low
5.0%
in 2021
Years of data
6
2000–2021

Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight in Eswatini, 2000–2021

02468102000201020212000: 9.1 % of children under 52006: 6 % of children under 52008: 7.3 % of children under 52010: 5.9 % of children under 52014: 5.8 % of children under 52021: 5 % 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 Eswatini is 5.0%, measured in 2021. That is the lowest value across all 6 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 15.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, malnutrition: share of children who are underweight in Eswatini peaked at 9.1% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 5.0%, in 2021.

That places Eswatini 60th out of 96 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 7.5% 6.0% 9.1% 3
2010s 5.8% 5.8% 5.9% 2
2020s 5.0% 5.0% 5.0% 1

Countries ranked near Eswatini

  1. 57 Honduras 7.1% compare
  2. 58 Thailand 6.7% compare
  3. 59 Tajikistan 5.2% compare
  4. 60 El Salvador 5.0% compare
  5. 62 Ecuador 4.9% compare
  6. 62 South Africa 4.9% compare

See the full ranking of 96 places →

More reference data data for Eswatini

All data for Eswatini →

Frequently asked questions

What is malnutrition: share of children who are underweight in Eswatini?
Malnutrition: share of children who are underweight in Eswatini was 5.0% 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 Eswatini?
The highest recorded value was 9.1% in 2000.
What is the lowest malnutrition: share of children who are underweight recorded in Eswatini?
The lowest recorded value was 5.0% in 2021.
How does Eswatini rank for malnutrition: share of children who are underweight?
Eswatini ranks 60th out of 96 countries with data for 2021.
Is malnutrition: share of children who are underweight rising or falling in Eswatini?
Over the last ten years it is down 15.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Eswatini 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.