Prevalence of stunting, height for age (% of children under 5) - Country Ranking - Central America & the Caribbean

Definition: Prevalence of stunting is the percentage of children under age 5 whose height for age is more than two standard deviations below the median for the international reference population ages 0-59 months. For children up to two years old height is measured by recumbent length. For older children height is measured by stature while standing. The data are based on the WHO's new child growth standards released in 2006.

Source: UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child malnutrition estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology.

See also: Thematic map, Time series comparison

Find indicator:
Rank Country Value Year
1 Guatemala 46.70 2015
2 Honduras 22.60 2012
3 Haiti 21.90 2017
4 Nicaragua 17.30 2012
5 Panama 15.80 2019
6 Belize 15.00 2015
7 El Salvador 13.60 2014
8 Jamaica 9.30 2016
9 Trinidad and Tobago 9.20 2011
10 Costa Rica 9.00 2018
11 Barbados 7.70 2012
12 Cuba 7.10 2019
12 Dominican Republic 7.10 2013
14 St. Lucia 2.50 2012

More rankings: Africa | Asia | Central America & the Caribbean | Europe | Middle East | North America | Oceania | South America | World |

Aggregation method: Linear mixed-effect model estimates

Periodicity: Annual

General Comments: Undernourished children have lower resistance to infection and are more likely to die from common childhood ailments such as diarrheal diseases and respiratory infections. Frequent illness saps the nutritional status of those who survive, locking them int