Chapter 3 Additional World Health Assembly nutrition indicators

Key messages
  • The prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding in Africa is 43.6 percent, very similar to the global average. Eastern Africa has achieved considerable progress with a prevalence of 60.7 percent in 2019. On the other hand, the prevalence is well below the global average in Southern and Western Africa.
  • The prevalence of adult obesity is 12.8 percent in Africa, very similar to the global rate. However, it is lower in all subregions except for Northern and Southern Africa where the rate is about twice the global average. The trend is upward in all regions and growth is fastest in Northern and Southern Africa.