Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Bolivia
Bolivia: Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty was 3.4% in 2016. ▼ Falling
Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Bolivia, 1988–2016
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 share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Bolivia is 3.4%, measured in 2016. That is the lowest value across all 11 years on record.
That represents a change of down 24.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Bolivia peaked at 12.5% in 1994 and was at its lowest, 3.4%, in 2016.
Bolivia ranks 72nd of 96 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 11 years of available data.
Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Bolivia, year by year
| Year | % of children under 5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 9.8% | — |
| 1989 | 8.9% | -9.2% |
| 1990 | 9.7% | +9.0% |
| 1991 | 10.2% | +5.2% |
| 1992 | 10.5% | +2.9% |
| 1994 | 12.5% | +19.0% |
| 1998 | 5.9% | -52.8% |
| 2003 | 5.8% | -1.7% |
| 2008 | 4.5% | -22.4% |
| 2012 | 3.6% | -20.0% |
| 2016 | 3.4% | -5.6% |
Bolivia compared with similar countries
- Bolivia's 3.4% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 11.6%, 29% of the median. (38 countries reporting)
- Bolivia's 3.4% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 3.7%, 92% of the median. (17 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 9.4% | 8.9% | 9.8% | 2 |
| 1990s | 9.8% | 5.9% | 12.5% | 5 |
| 2000s | 5.2% | 4.5% | 5.8% | 2 |
| 2010s | 3.5% | 3.4% | 3.6% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Bolivia
- 70 Romania 3.5% compare
- 70 Saudi Arabia 3.5% compare
- 73 Azerbaijan 3.0% compare
- 73 Dominican Republic 3.0% compare
- 73 Morocco 3.0% compare
More poverty & inequality data for Bolivia
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 9 surveys (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per person (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty 2.55 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 2,209 kg per hectare (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate 11.57 % change on previous year (2024)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 21.51 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 21.5% (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Bolivia?
- Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Bolivia was 3.4% in 2016, according to Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty recorded in Bolivia?
- The highest recorded value was 12.5% in 1994.
- What is the lowest share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty recorded in Bolivia?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.4% in 2016.
- How does Bolivia rank for share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty?
- Bolivia ranks 72nd out of 96 countries with data for 2016.
- Is share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty rising or falling in Bolivia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 24.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Bolivia 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 Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Underweight children are those less than 5 years old, whose weight for age is more than two standard deviations below the median for the international reference population. Extreme poverty is defined as living below the International Poverty Line of $3 per day.