Malnutrition: Share of children who are wasted in Bangladesh

Bangladesh: Malnutrition: Share of children who are wasted was 10.7% in 2022. ▼ Falling

Latest (2022)
10.7%
Change on year
up 9.2%
World rank
9th
of 99 countries
All-time high
20.7%
in 1997
All-time low
8.4%
in 2018
Years of data
27
1986–2022

Malnutrition: Share of children who are wasted in Bangladesh, 1986–2022

051015201986200420221986: 17.3 % of children under 51990: 17.5 % of children under 51991: 15.2 % of children under 51992: 16.1 % of children under 51993: 14 % of children under 51994: 16.7 % of children under 51995: 15.1 % of children under 51996: 15.5 % of children under 51997: 20.7 % of children under 51998: 15 % of children under 51999: 13.7 % of children under 52000: 12.5 % of children under 52001: 12.7 % of children under 52002: 12.4 % of children under 52003: 12.5 % of children under 52004: 14.6 % of children under 52005: 14.5 % of children under 52006: 11.9 % of children under 52007: 17.5 % of children under 52011: 15.7 % of children under 52012: 11 % of children under 52013: 9.6 % of children under 52014: 14.4 % of children under 52015: 10 % of children under 52018: 8.4 % of children under 52019: 9.8 % of children under 52022: 10.7 % 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 wasted in Bangladesh is 10.7%, measured in 2022.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 9.2% on the previous year and down 2.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, malnutrition: share of children who are wasted in Bangladesh peaked at 20.7% in 1997 and was at its lowest, 8.4%, in 2018.

That places Bangladesh 9th out of 99 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 27 years of available data.

Malnutrition: Share of children who are wasted in Bangladesh, year by year

Annual values for Malnutrition: Share of children who are wasted in Bangladesh, 1986 to 2022.
Year % of children under 5 Change
1986 17.3%
1990 17.5% +1.2%
1991 15.2% -13.1%
1992 16.1% +5.9%
1993 14.0% -13.0%
1994 16.7% +19.3%
1995 15.1% -9.6%
1996 15.5% +2.6%
1997 20.7% +33.5%
1998 15.0% -27.5%
1999 13.7% -8.7%
2000 12.5% -8.8%
2001 12.7% +1.6%
2002 12.4% -2.4%
2003 12.5% +0.8%
2004 14.6% +16.8%
2005 14.5% -0.7%
2006 11.9% -17.9%
2007 17.5% +47.1%
2011 15.7% -10.3%
2012 11.0% -29.9%
2013 9.6% -12.7%
2014 14.4% +50.0%
2015 10.0% -30.6%
2018 8.4% -16.0%
2019 9.8% +16.7%
2022 10.7% +9.2%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 17.3% 17.3% 17.3% 1
1990s 15.9% 13.7% 20.7% 10
2000s 13.6% 11.9% 17.5% 8
2010s 11.3% 8.4% 15.7% 7
2020s 10.7% 10.7% 10.7% 1

Countries ranked near Bangladesh

  1. 6 Syria 11.5% compare
  2. 7 Malaysia 11.0% compare
  3. 8 Niger 10.9% compare
  4. 9 Lao People's Democratic Republic 10.7% compare
  5. 11 Senegal 10.2% compare
  6. 12 Cambodia 9.6% compare

See the full ranking of 99 places →

More reference data data for Bangladesh

All data for Bangladesh →

Frequently asked questions

What is malnutrition: share of children who are wasted in Bangladesh?
Malnutrition: share of children who are wasted in Bangladesh was 10.7% in 2022, 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 wasted recorded in Bangladesh?
The highest recorded value was 20.7% in 1997.
What is the lowest malnutrition: share of children who are wasted recorded in Bangladesh?
The lowest recorded value was 8.4% in 2018.
How does Bangladesh rank for malnutrition: share of children who are wasted?
Bangladesh ranks 9th out of 99 countries with data for 2022.
Is malnutrition: share of children who are wasted rising or falling in Bangladesh?
Over the last ten years it is down 2.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Bangladesh 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 wasted. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Malnutrition: Share of children who are wasted in Bangladesh. Statizoid, drawing on Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 29 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-children-with-a-weight-too-low-for-their-height-wasting/bangladesh/

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About this data

Indicator
Malnutrition: Share of children who are wasted
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
99 places, 962 data points, 1984–2024
Last refreshed

The share of children younger than five years old that are defined as "wasted". Wasting is when a child’s weight is significantly lower than the average for their height, for example, because of acute food shortage or disease.