Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty was 17.1% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Sri Lanka, 1987–2024
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 Sri Lanka is 17.1%, measured in 2024.
The figure is down 34.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Sri Lanka peaked at 29.5% in 1987 and was at its lowest, 12.2%, in 2021.
Sri Lanka ranks 22nd of 96 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 14 years of available data.
Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | % of children under 5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 29.5% | — |
| 1993 | 29.1% | -1.4% |
| 1995 | 29.3% | +0.7% |
| 2000 | 22.9% | -21.8% |
| 2007 | 22.1% | -3.5% |
| 2009 | 21.6% | -2.3% |
| 2012 | 26.1% | +20.8% |
| 2016 | 20.5% | -21.5% |
| 2019 | 14.0% | -31.7% |
| 2020 | 13.1% | -6.4% |
| 2021 | 12.2% | -6.9% |
| 2022 | 15.3% | +25.4% |
| 2023 | 17.1% | +11.8% |
| 2024 | 17.1% | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 29.5% | 29.5% | 29.5% | 1 |
| 1990s | 29.2% | 29.1% | 29.3% | 2 |
| 2000s | 22.2% | 21.6% | 22.9% | 3 |
| 2010s | 20.2% | 14.0% | 26.1% | 3 |
| 2020s | 15.0% | 12.2% | 17.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More poverty & inequality data for Sri Lanka
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 2 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 1.97 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 3,804 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 25.42 % change on previous year (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 9.85 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 9.8% (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 Sri Lanka?
- Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in Sri Lanka was 17.1% in 2024, 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 Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 29.5% in 1987.
- What is the lowest share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.2% in 2021.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty?
- Sri Lanka ranks 22nd out of 96 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is down 34.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sri Lanka 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.