Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty was 12.0% in 2021. ▼ Falling
Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Sierra Leone, 1989–2021
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
Sierra Leone recorded 12.0% for share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in 2021. That is the lowest value across all 9 years on record.
The figure is down 11.1% on the previous year and down 35.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Sierra Leone peaked at 27.2% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 12.0%, in 2021.
Sierra Leone ranks 38th of 96 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | % of children under 5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 23.7% | — |
| 1990 | 25.4% | +7.2% |
| 2000 | 23.4% | -7.9% |
| 2005 | 27.2% | +16.2% |
| 2010 | 18.5% | -32.0% |
| 2014 | 13.0% | -29.7% |
| 2017 | 15.6% | +20.0% |
| 2019 | 13.5% | -13.5% |
| 2021 | 12.0% | -11.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 23.7% | 23.7% | 23.7% | 1 |
| 1990s | 25.4% | 25.4% | 25.4% | 1 |
| 2000s | 25.3% | 23.4% | 27.2% | 2 |
| 2010s | 15.2% | 13.0% | 18.5% | 4 |
| 2020s | 12.0% | 12.0% | 12.0% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
More poverty & inequality data for Sierra Leone
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 1 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 3.79 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 1,470 kg per hectare (2023)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate -25.13 % change on previous year (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 6.33 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 6.3% (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 Sierra Leone?
- Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Sierra Leone was 12.0% 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 share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 27.2% in 2005.
- What is the lowest share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.0% in 2021.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty?
- Sierra Leone ranks 38th out of 96 countries with data for 2021.
- Is share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is down 35.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sierra Leone 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 9 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
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.