Malawi · Child Underweight, Under 5 (survey, %)
12.8%2020
Publisher note: Malawi Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2019-20, Survey Findings Report. Zomba, Malawi: National Statistical Office
Unit: percent of children under age 5. Publisher measure: Underweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (% weight-for-age <-2 SD), survey-based estimates.
Weight-for-age below -2 SD, WHO country-level survey estimates, both sexes, no additional disaggregation; retain survey comments. Reference years are irregular survey labels; fieldwork windows were not supplied by the retained projection. Matching year labels do not prove matching collection periods.
Measurement basis: survey-based estimate; reference years are irregular.
Reference-period cadence: irregular survey reference years.
Displayed values are rounded, with extra precision when needed to keep a positive estimate positive. Downloads retain the full numeric estimate and the publisher's original display text separately.
A “<” sign means strictly below the stated number. Numeric readings and uncertainty endpoints keep their own comparison signs. A number without a sign does not establish certainty or an observed outcome.
World Health Organization (Global Health Observatory); retrieved 2026-09-07. Retrieval time is separate from an official publisher release vintage.
Download this immutable source capture · Source and coverage corrections
One row per country, indicator and year, with raw values, source links and reuse notices. Thresholds have an empty numeric value and separate number/operator fields; value_kind distinguishes upper bounds from absent readings.
History and uncertainty
Charts plot numeric readings. Reported upper bounds create gaps; their values, uncertainty endpoints and source notes remain available in the table and downloads.
Reported estimates and uncertainty · 16 rows
Each comparison sign applies to its own reading or uncertainty endpoint. Values retain source precision. “Not reported” identifies an absent reading or uncertainty endpoint in this source capture.
| Country | Year | Reading | Lower endpoint | Upper endpoint | Publisher note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Malawi | 1992 | 24.4 | 22.4 | 26.4 | Malawi demographic and health survey 1992. Demographic and Health Surveys. National Statistics Office. Zomba, Malawi, 1993 |
| Malawi | 1995 | 26.5 | Not reported | Not reported | Malawi social indicators survey 1995. MICS surveys. National Statistical Office and the Centre for Social Research. Lilongwe, Malawi, 1996 Converted estimate |
| Malawi | 1998 | 24.5 | 22.6 | 26.5 | A relative profile of poverty in Malawi, 1998: A quintile-based poverty analysis of the Malawi integrated household survey, 1997-98. Poverty Monitoring System. Reduced age range |
| Malawi | 2000 | 21.5 | 20.5 | 22.6 | Malawi demographic and health survey 2000. Demographic and Health Surveys. Zomba, Malawi and Calverton, Maryland, USA: National Statistical Office and ORC Macro, 2001 |
| Malawi | 2002 | 21.7 | 20.3 | 23.2 | Malawi 2002 Core Welfare Indicators Questionnaire Survey |
| Malawi | 2004 | 18.6 | 17.5 | 19.7 | Malawi demographic and health survey 2004. Demographic and Health Surveys. Calverton, Maryland: NSO and ORC Macro, 2005 |
| Malawi | 2006 | 15.6 | 14.6 | 16.6 | Malawi multiple indicator cluster survey 2006, Final report. Lilongwe, Malawi: National Statistical Office and UNICEF, 2008. |
| Malawi | 2009 | 12.1 | 9.8 | 14.8 | The national micronutrient survey 2009. Lilongwe, Malawi: Ministry of Health, UNICEF, Irish Aid and CDC, 2011. Reduced age range |
| Malawi | 2010 | 13.9 | 12.6 | 15.2 | Malawi demographic and health survey 2010. Demographic and Health Surveys. Zomba, Malawi, and Calverton, Maryland, USA: NSO and ICF Macro. 2011 |
| Malawi | 2014 | 16.7 | 15.9 | 17.6 | Malawi MDG endline survey 2014. Final Report. Zomba, Malawi: National Statistical Office, 2014. |
| Malawi | 2015 | 11.8 | 10.8 | 12.9 | Malawi Demographic and Health Survey 2015-16. Zomba, Malawi, and Rockville, Maryland, USA. NSO and ICF. |
| Malawi | 2016 | 15 | 13.6 | 16.6 | Report of the Seven Nutrition Surveys Conducted in Flood Affected Livelihood Zones of Malawi - Assessment Period November - December 2016 Reduced age range; Age calculated using alternate methods; Oedema data was not considered in the analysis |
| Malawi | 2017 | 12.6 | 11.6 | 13.8 | Report of the Seven Nutrition Surveys Conducted in Flood Affected Livelihood Zones of Malawi - Assessment Period May 2017 Reduced age range; Oedema data was not considered in the analysis |
| Malawi | 2018 | 11.8 | 10.2 | 13.6 | Report of the Seven Nutrition Surveys Conducted in Flood Affected Livelihood Zones of Malawi - Assessment Period January - February 2018 Reduced age range; Age calculated using alternate methods |
| Malawi | 2019 | 10.8 | 10 | 11.8 | Malawi Fifth Integrated Household Survey 2019-2020 Age calculated using alternate methods; Oedema data was not considered in the analysis |
| Malawi | 2020 | 12.8 | 12 | 13.6 | Malawi Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2019-20, Survey Findings Report. Zomba, Malawi: National Statistical Office |
One row per country, indicator and year, with raw values, source links and reuse notices. Thresholds have an empty numeric value and separate number/operator fields; value_kind distinguishes upper bounds from absent readings.