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Hunger · Zambia

Child malnutrition in Southern

27%of children under five stunted (2024 survey)High

Southern ranks 9th of 10 parts of Zambia for child stunting, below Zambia's 32%.

2.6%children under 5 wasted; Zambia 2.5%
14%children under 5 underweight; Zambia 12%
53%children 6-59 months anaemic; Zambia 51%

Child stunting across Zambia

The same 2024 survey, every part it reports.

  1. 1Luapula45%
  2. 2Muchinga43%
  3. 3Northern43%
  4. 4Eastern36%
  5. 5North-Western35%
  6. 6Copperbelt31%
  7. 7Central28%
  8. 8Western28%
  9. 9Southern27%
  10. 10Lusaka20%

Frequently asked questions

What is the child malnutrition rate in Southern?

In Zambia's 2024 Demographic and Health Survey, 27% of children under five in Southern were stunted (too short for their age), 2.6% wasted and 14% underweight.

Is malnutrition in Southern worse than in the rest of Zambia?

Southern ranks 9th of 10 for stunting in the survey, highest first, below Zambia's 32%.

How many children are anaemic in Southern?

53% of children aged 6 to 59 months in Southern had anaemia in 2024, above Zambia's 51%; WHO counts 40% or more as a severe public health problem.

Is there data for cities and towns in Southern?

The survey reports Zambia by region, not by city, so a town or neighbourhood in Southern shares these figures. Local clinics and nutrition programmes keep their own records.

Source: Zambia Demographic and Health Survey 2024 (ZM2024DHS), via The DHS Program, STATcompiler. Survey estimates for small regions carry wide margins; read differences of a few points as similar.

Hunger in Zambia as a whole

Undernourishment, food insecurity, the Global Hunger Index and the UN's latest estimates for the country.

Hunger in Zambia