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Hunger · Sub-Saharan Africa

Hunger and malnutrition in Sierra Leone

28.7Global Hunger Index 2026, rank 109Serious

25% of people in Sierra Leone do not get enough to eat, about 2.2 million. 26% of young children are too short for their age, a sign of long-term undernutrition, and 6.3% are dangerously thin. Stunting ranges from 22% in Western Rural to 45% in Falaba.

25%undernourished (2024, FAO)
88%moderately or severely food insecure (2024)
26%children under 5 stunted (2021)
6.3%children under 5 wasted (2021)
12%children under 5 underweight (2021)
2.8%children under 5 overweight (2021)
73%children 6-59 months anaemic (2019, WHO)
91 per 1,000children who die before age five (2024)

Child stunting by region in Sierra Leone

Children under five too short for their age, the 2019 Demographic and Health Survey (2019). Survey figures can differ from the UN estimate above, which is modelled across surveys.

  1. 1FalabaNorthern45%
  2. 2Koinadugu (before 2017)Northern41%
  3. 3PujehunSouthern38%
  4. 4KoinaduguNorthern37%
  5. 5KareneNorth Western37%
  6. 6TonkoliliNorthern32%
  7. 7Western UrbanWestern32%
  8. 8KambiaNorth Western32%
  9. 9MoyambaSouthern32%
  10. 10Northern (before 2017)32%
  11. 11BontheSouthern31%
  12. 12Port LokoNorth Western31%
  13. 13KailahunEastern29%
  14. 14BoSouthern28%
  15. 15KenemaEastern25%
  16. 16KonoEastern23%
  17. 17BombaliNorthern23%
  18. 18Western RuralWestern22%

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. 200057.7
  2. 200647.2
  3. 201233.8
  4. 201832.3
  5. 202628.7

Undernourishment in Sierra Leone since 2002

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

  1. 200249%
  2. 200444%
  3. 200636%
  4. 200827%
  5. 201022%
  6. 201221%
  7. 201423%
  8. 201625%
  9. 201828%
  10. 202028%
  11. 202226%
  12. 202425%

How Sierra Leone compares

Sierra Leone has the 31st highest child stunting of 129 countries with an estimate since 2015. In Sub-Saharan Africa it is 24th of 47.

Frequently asked questions

What is Sierra Leone's rank in the Global Hunger Index?

Sierra Leone ranks 109 in the 2026 Global Hunger Index with a score of 28.7, which the index calls serious. It scored 57.7 in 2000. The score combines undernourishment, child stunting, child wasting and deaths of children under five.

How many people are hungry in Sierra Leone?

FAO estimates 25% of people in Sierra Leone were undernourished in 2024, about 2.2 million people. 88% faced moderate or severe food insecurity (2024).

What percentage of children are stunted in Sierra Leone?

26% of children under five in Sierra Leone were stunted in 2021, which WHO rates high. 6.3% were wasted (2021). That ranks Sierra Leone 31 of 129 countries with an estimate since 2015, highest first.

Which region of Sierra Leone has the most malnutrition?

In the 2019 Demographic and Health Survey, Falaba had the highest share of stunted children, 45%, and Western Rural the lowest, 22%.

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 (SL2019DHS).

Hunger in other countries of Sub-Saharan Africa

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