Sierra Leone's prevalence of severe food insecurity in the population (%) was 31.9% in 2024, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 0.3 percentage points from 32.2% in 2019.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 31.9% | 2024 |
| Five years earlier | 32.2% | 2019 |
| Highest | 33.7% | 2023 |
| Lowest | 26.7% | 2015 |
| Average since 2015 | 31.71% | 2015–2024 |
| First recorded | 26.7% | 2015 |
Over five years it is down 0.3 percentage points from 32.2% in 2019. Since 2015 it is up 5.2 percentage points from 26.7% in 2015.
What the numbers say
In 2024, Sierra Leone's prevalence of severe food insecurity in the population (%) fell 1.8 percentage points on 2023 (from 33.7% to 31.9%).
Across the 8 yearly changes before that (2016 to 2023), the average change was +0.88 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.86 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 5.2 percentage points in 2016 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.8 percentage points in 2024. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.34 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 30% of the movement over 10 observed years.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
In 2024, Sierra Leone had the 2nd highest value of the 93 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Sierra Leone | 31.9% | 2024 |
| World | 10.14% | 2024 |
| Low income | 26.83% | 2024 |
Closest to Sierra Leone in the 2024 ranking
- Malawi — 1st of 93: 58.1%
- Afghanistan — 3rd of 93: 30.2%
- Namibia — 4th of 93: 28.1%
- Jamaica — 5th of 93: 27.4%
What this measures
The percentage of people in the population who live in households classified as severely food insecure. A household is classified as severely food insecure when at least one adult in the household has reported to have been exposed, at times during the year, to several of the most severe experiences described in the FIES questions, such as to have been forced to reduce the quantity of the food, to have skipped meals, having gone hungry, or having to go for a whole day without eating because of a lack of money or other resources.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a population-weighted average.
All 10 values
| Year | Prevalence of severe food insecurity in the population (%) |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 31.9 |
| 2023 | 33.7 |
| 2022 | 32.3 |
| 2021 | 31.9 |
| 2020 | 31.5 |
| 2019 | 32.2 |
| 2018 | 32.4 |
| 2017 | 32.6 |
| 2016 | 31.9 |
| 2015 | 26.7 |
Prevalence of severe food insecurity in the population (%) in nearby economies
More health data for Sierra Leone
- Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 13.22% (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 13.55% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female — 1.65 million (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 37.28% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male — 1.67 million (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 38.03% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, total — 3.32 million (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 37.65% (2025)
- Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population) — 12.34% (2025)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Sierra Leone's prevalence of severe food insecurity in the population (%)?
- 31.9% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 2015?
- It is up 5.2 percentage points from 26.7% in 2015. The highest value was 33.7% in 2023 and the lowest 26.7% in 2015.
- How does Sierra Leone rank?
- 2nd highest of 93 economies with data for 2024.
- Is the latest change in prevalence of severe food insecurity in the population (%) unusual for Sierra Leone?
- In 2024, Sierra Leone's prevalence of severe food insecurity in the population (%) fell 1.8 percentage points on 2023 (from 33.7% to 31.9%). Across the 8 yearly changes before that (2016 to 2023), the average change was +0.88 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.86 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SN.ITK.SVFI.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.
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