Anaemia increases the risk of infections and death, impairs cognitive performance, and causes extreme fatigue, poor pregnancy outcomes, loss of earnings, and poor growth and development. It is a strong indicator of overall health (WHO, 2023b).
| 2000 | 2005 | 2010 | 2012 | 2015 | 2019 | |
| World | 31.2 | 29.9 | 28.6 | 28.5 | 28.8 | 29.9 |
| Arab States | 38.1 | 36.2 | 33.8 | 33.2 | 32.8 | 33.2 |
| Low-income countries | 47.3 | 45.4 | 43.2 | 43.0 | 43.3 | 43.9 |
| Lower-middle-income countries | 35.7 | 34.1 | 31.9 | 31.2 | 30.6 | 30.2 |
| Upper-middle-income countries | 37.0 | 33.9 | 30.5 | 29.7 | 29.5 | 30.4 |
| High-income countries | 31.2 | 28.6 | 26.1 | 25.7 | 25.9 | 27.1 |
| Arab States LDCs | 50.5 | 48.7 | 46.6 | 46.1 | 45.8 | 45.9 |
| Conflict countries | 44.5 | 42.2 | 39.6 | 39.0 | 38.7 | 39.2 |
| Non-conflict countries | 34.9 | 33.2 | 30.8 | 30.2 | 29.8 | 29.9 |
In 2019, the prevalence of anaemia among women aged 15 to 49 years (Figure 16, Table 10) was higher in the Arab States (33.3 percent) than the world average (29.9 percent). Overall, women suffering from anaemia are more likely to be residing in rural settings, in poorer households, and to have received no formal education (FAO et al., 2022). Anaemia was the highest in Arab LDCs (45.9 percent) and in low-income countries (43.9 percent), and it was the lowest in high-income countries (27.1 percent) in the Arab States, but still considered a moderate public health problem (WHO, 2023b).
The reduction in the prevalence of anaemia in the Arab States (-12.9 percent) was three times higher than the global average (-4.2 percent) between 2000 and 2019. In this period, the prevalence of anaemia decreased significantly in upper-middle-income countries (-17.8 percent), lower-middle-income countries (-15.4 percent), and high-income countries (13.1 percent). In low-income countries and Arab LDCs, anaemia decreased by less than the regional average: by 7.2 percent and 9.1 percent, respectively.
Anaemia is a moderate (20.0-39.9 percent) to severe (≥40.0 percent) (WHO, 2023b) public health problem in the region. In 2019, the prevalence of anaemia was the highest (Figure 17) in Yemen (61.5 percent), Mauritania (43.3 percent), and Somalia (43.1 percent), and the lowest in Kuwait (23.7 percent) and the United Arab Emirates (24.3 percent). Iraq (-27.6 percent), Oman (-23.0 percent) and Egypt (-20.3 percent) have achieved the most significant progress in reducing anaemia. On the contrary, anaemia has increased in Jordan (24.0 percent and in Lebanon (6.4 percent) significantly.
Prevention and swift treatment of anaemia was included in the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with the intention of halving anaemia prevalence in women of reproductive age by 2030—a bold and progressive target. Unfortunately, Arab States have made no improvement in reducing anaemia; in 2019 the prevalence of anaemia was at the same level as in 2012. Only low-income countries have made some modest improvement (-3.2 percent) in the reduction of anaemia since 2012. Urgent action and new policies, such as iron supplementation and food fortification, are needed in the region if countries want to achieve some significant progress in reducing anaemia among women aged 15 to 49 years. For example, Oman has implemented a national iron and folic acid supplementation programme for pregnant women since 1997 in order to reduce the prevalence of spina bifida (Alasfoor et al., 2010). By 2004, 81 percent of flour in Oman was fortified (FAO et al., 2019). This may explain the significant reduction of anaemia in Oman since 2000 (Figure 17). World Bank estimates that achieving the target of reducing anaemia in women would require almost an additional 1 billion USD in total financing in this decade (Meera et al., 2017).
