Chapter 2 Sustainable Development Goal 2.2: Malnutrition

2.2 Wasting among children under five

The share of children under five years affected by wasting in the Arab region was 7.8 percent in 2020, higher than the global average of 6.7 percent. Childhood wasting is a medium public health problem both in the region as well as globally. Low-income countries of the region displayed a very high prevalence of wasting among children under five years (16.3 percent) in 2020. The prevalence was medium in high-income countries (6.7 percent) and lower-middle-income countries (6.6 percent) and low in upper-middle-income countries (3.8 percent). In conflict-affected Arab countries wasting was a high public health problem with a prevalence of 10.2 percent. In non-conflict countries 6.6 percent of children under five years were wasted, which is a medium public health issue.

FIGURE 11.

Prevalence of wasting among children under five in the Arab States by subregion (2020)

Source: UNICEF, WHO and World Bank.
https://doi.org/10.4060/cb7495en-fig11
TABLE 7.

Prevalence of wasting among children under five (percent)

2020
World6.7
Arab States7.8
Low-income economies16.3
Lower-middle-income economies6.6
Upper-middle-income economies3.8
High-income economies6.7
Arab States LDCs15.8
Conflict countries10.2
Non-conflict countries6.6
Source: UNICEF, WHO and World Bank.

The most recent country-level data shows a very high prevalence of wasting in Djibouti (21.5 percent), the Sudan (16.3 percent) and Yemen (16.4 percent), all three representing the least developed countries of the region. The other three LDCs, the Comoros, Mauritania and Somalia, had high levels of wasting. A very low prevalence of wasting was found in Jordan, Palestine and Tunisia.

FIGURE 12.

Prevalence of wasting among children under five in the Arab States by country (latest year available)

Source: UNICEF, WHO and World Bank.
https://doi.org/10.4060/cb7495en-fig12