Malnutrition: Number of children who are wasted in Niger

Niger: Malnutrition: Number of children who are wasted was 497,560 in 2022. ▲ Rising

Latest (2022)
497,560
Change on year
down 3.4%
World rank
11th
of 99 countries
All-time high
597,700
in 2018
All-time low
325,680
in 1992
Years of data
20
1985–2022

Malnutrition: Number of children who are wasted in Niger, 1985–2022

0200.0k400.0k600.0k1985200320221985: 362.8k1992: 325.7k1998: 491.3k2000: 380.5k2006: 341.1k2007: 381.0k2008: 435.8k2009: 408.7k2010: 534.5k2011: 433.4k2012: 483.4k2013: 461.2k2014: 543.8k2015: 535.5k2016: 420.6k2018: 597.7k2019: 423.8k2020: 528.5k2021: 515.3k2022: 497.6k

Source: World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for malnutrition: number of children who are wasted in Niger is 497,560, measured in 2022.

That represents a change of down 3.4% on the previous year and up 2.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, malnutrition: number of children who are wasted in Niger peaked at 597,700 in 2018 and was at its lowest, 325,680, in 1992.

Niger ranks 11th of 99 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 20 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 362,800 362,800 362,800 1
1990s 408,480 325,680 491,280 2
2000s 389,412 341,070 435,790 5
2010s 492,666 420,570 597,700 9
2020s 513,773 497,560 528,500 3

Countries ranked near Niger

  1. 8 Ethiopia 1.17 million compare
  2. 9 Yemen 1.03 million compare
  3. 10 Philippines 574,510 compare
  4. 12 Egypt 405,890 compare
  5. 13 Cote d'Ivoire 368,480 compare
  6. 14 Syria 348,130 compare

See the full ranking of 99 places →

More environment data for Niger

All data for Niger →

Frequently asked questions

What is malnutrition: number of children who are wasted in Niger?
Malnutrition: number of children who are wasted in Niger was 497,560 in 2022, according to World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest malnutrition: number of children who are wasted recorded in Niger?
The highest recorded value was 597,700 in 2018.
What is the lowest malnutrition: number of children who are wasted recorded in Niger?
The lowest recorded value was 325,680 in 1992.
How does Niger rank for malnutrition: number of children who are wasted?
Niger ranks 11th out of 99 countries with data for 2022.
Is malnutrition: number of children who are wasted rising or falling in Niger?
Over the last ten years it is up 2.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Niger data come from?
The figures come from World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Malnutrition: Number of children who are wasted. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 20 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Malnutrition: Number of children who are wasted
Source
World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
99 places, 962 data points, 1985–2024
Last refreshed

Estimated number of children younger than five who are '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.