Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight in Eswatini
Eswatini: Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight was 5.0% in 2021. ▼ Falling
Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight in Eswatini, 2000–2021
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.
Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight in Eswatini, year by year
| Year | % of children under 5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 9.1% | — |
| 2006 | 6.0% | -34.1% |
| 2008 | 7.3% | +21.7% |
| 2010 | 5.9% | -19.2% |
| 2014 | 5.8% | -1.7% |
| 2021 | 5.0% | -13.8% |
Eswatini compared with similar countries
- Eswatini's 5.0% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 11.6%, 43% of the median. (38 countries reporting)
- Eswatini's 5.0% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 14.3%, 35% of the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | 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
- 57 Honduras 7.1% compare
- 58 Thailand 6.7% compare
- 59 Tajikistan 5.2% compare
- 60 El Salvador 5.0% compare
- 62 Ecuador 4.9% compare
- 62 South Africa 4.9% compare
More reference data data for Eswatini
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0203 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.3059 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.3309 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0048 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.3309 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0679 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.0557 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.66 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.82 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.026 (2050)
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
CSV · JSON — 6 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
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.