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Hunger · Sub-Saharan Africa

Hunger and malnutrition in Mozambique

25.9Global Hunger Index 2026, rank 107Serious

22% of people in Mozambique do not get enough to eat, about 7.9 million. 37% of young children are too short for their age, a sign of long-term undernutrition, and 3.8% are dangerously thin. Stunting ranges from 8.6% in Maputo Provincia to 47% in Nampula.

22%undernourished (2024, FAO)
37%children under 5 stunted (2022)
3.8%children under 5 wasted (2022)
15%children under 5 underweight (2022)
3.2%children under 5 overweight (2022)
68%children 6-59 months anaemic (2019, WHO)
59 per 1,000children who die before age five (2024)

Child stunting by region in Mozambique

Children under five too short for their age, the 2022 Demographic and Health Survey (2022). Survey figures can differ from the UN estimate above, which is modelled across surveys.

  1. 1Nampula47%
  2. 2Cabo Delgado45%
  3. 3Zambézia44%
  4. 4Manica39%
  5. 5Niassa36%
  6. 6Tete36%
  7. 7Sofala30%
  8. 8Gaza18%
  9. 9Inhambane16%
  10. 10Maputo Cidade11%
  11. 11Maputo Provincia8.6%

Global Hunger Index score over time

Out of 100, lower is better. The index rescores past years with the latest data, so these are comparable with each other.

  1. 200046.9
  2. 200636.3
  3. 201230.8
  4. 201831.6
  5. 202625.9

Undernourishment in Mozambique since 2002

Share of people not getting enough calories, FAO. Each figure is a three-year average centred on the year.

  1. 200235%
  2. 200431%
  3. 200627%
  4. 200824%
  5. 201020%
  6. 201222%
  7. 201433%
  8. 201642%
  9. 201832%
  10. 202026%
  11. 202222%
  12. 202422%

How Mozambique compares

Mozambique has the 13th highest child stunting of 129 countries with an estimate since 2015. In Sub-Saharan Africa it is 10th of 47.

Frequently asked questions

What is Mozambique's rank in the Global Hunger Index?

Mozambique ranks 107 in the 2026 Global Hunger Index with a score of 25.9, which the index calls serious. It scored 46.9 in 2000. The score combines undernourishment, child stunting, child wasting and deaths of children under five.

How many people are hungry in Mozambique?

FAO estimates 22% of people in Mozambique were undernourished in 2024, about 7.9 million people.

What percentage of children are stunted in Mozambique?

37% of children under five in Mozambique were stunted in 2022, which WHO rates very high. 3.8% were wasted (2022). That ranks Mozambique 13 of 129 countries with an estimate since 2015, highest first.

Which region of Mozambique has the most malnutrition?

In the 2022 Demographic and Health Survey, Nampula had the highest share of stunted children, 47%, and Maputo Provincia the lowest, 8.6%.

Sources: FAO (undernourishment, food insecurity), UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Joint Malnutrition Estimates (stunting, wasting, underweight, overweight), WHO (anaemia) and UN IGME (child deaths), as published by the World Bank; Global Hunger Index 2026; regions from the DHS Program (MZ2022DHS).

Hunger in other countries of Sub-Saharan Africa

All countries