Stunting in children — all countries

Stunting in children — Bhutan

Stunting in children in Bhutan in 2023 — 17.9%. Ranked 18 in the world out of 25. Since 1987, the indicator has fallen by 43 pp.

2023 17.9% −15.6 pp vs 2010
World rank 18of 25
Period maximum 60.9%1987
Period minimum 17.9%2023

Trend over time

1987–2023 · % of children under 5

Stunting in children — Bhutan, 1987–202302040608019871991199519992003200720112015201920231987: 60.9%1999: 47.7%2008: 34.9%2010: 33.5%2023: 17.9%
Change over the period: −43 pp Annual average: -1.19 pp
Stunting in children — Bhutan, by year Bhutan All countries CSV XLSX
Year % Change, pp
2023 17.9
2010 33.5
2008 34.9
1999 47.7
1987 60.9

Southern Asia, 2023

The same indicator for neighboring countries — with links to their pages

LK Sri Lanka 10.3 BT Bhutan 17.9

About the indicator

The share of children under five whose height falls short of the WHO norm for their age by more than two standard deviations. Stunting is the trace of a prolonged shortage of nutrition in the first years of life, and it is irreversible: height cannot be made up later. That is why the indicator is considered the main measure of chronic undernutrition, unlike wasting, which speaks of an acute shortage of food right now.

Important: The data come from sample household surveys and are not annual: for the intervening years there are no values. The aggregate by country group is weighted by the number of children aged 0–14 — it cannot be weighted by population, the share of small children is too different.

Source: Global Health Observatory (WHO), license CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO.