Children under 5 with low height-for-age by world region, 2024.
Under-5 stunting prevalence is compared across world regions for 2024. The data use seven regional percentage rows, with each region’s children under 5 as the denominator. Oceania excluding Australia and New Zealand had the highest rate at 41.5%, while Australia and New Zealand had the lowest at 3.1%. The values come from the UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Joint Child Malnutrition Estimates source family and are not administrative counts.
| Rank | Entry | Value | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oceania excl. Australia/NZ | 41.5% | 2024 |
| 2 | Africa | 30.3% | 2024 |
| 3 | Asia | 23.3% | 2024 |
| 4 | Latin America & Caribbean | 12.4% | 2024 |
| 5 | Northern America | 4.1% | 2024 |
| 6 | Europe | 3.6% | 2024 |
| 7 | Australia & New Zealand | 3.1% | 2024 |
Source 1: World Bank World Development Indicators
Publisher: UNICEF / WHO / World Bank
Dataset/table: World Development Indicators
Units: % of children under 5
Date checked: 2026-05-26
Evidence: Supports 2024 regional stunting prevalence rows.
Source 2: World Health Organization Global Health Observatory
Publisher: World Health Organization
Dataset/table: Global Health Observatory
Units: % and number of children under 5
Date checked: 2026-05-26
Evidence: Supports the 2024 global stunting benchmark and JME definitions.
Stunting means height-for-age below minus two standard deviations from WHO child growth standards. Each row is a regional prevalence rate, so rows are not additive shares.
Rows use the 2025 UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Joint Child Malnutrition Estimates release. Values are plotted as percentages of children under 5 in each region for 2024; the high-low multiple uses rounded source percentages.
Rows use the same JME source family, year and unit. Source status remains source-labelled because the regional values are compiled institutional values rather than final administrative counts.
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