South Africa: Vitamin A supplementation coverage rate (% of children ages 6-59 months)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, South Africa's vitamin A supplementation coverage rate (% of children ages 6-59 months) fell 3 percentage points on 2022 (from 44% to 41%).

Across the 8 yearly changes before that (2005 to 2022), the average change was +2.63 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 11.6 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.5 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 29 percentage points in 2005 and the biggest yearly fall was 11 percentage points in 2020. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2016 to 2023 the straight-line trend is downward, about 1.35 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 54% of the movement over 8 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 2023, South Africa had the 27th highest value of the 43 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.

Closest to South Africa in the 2023 ranking

• Guinea-Bissau — 24th of 43: 73%
• Namibia — 25th of 43: 58%
• Ghana — 26th of 43: 44%
• Uganda — 28th of 43: 38%
• Zimbabwe — 29th of 43: 37%
• São Tomé and Principe — 30th of 43: 35%

What this measures

Vitamin A supplementation coverage rate refers to the percentage of children ages 6-59 months old receiving two high-dose vitamin A supplements in a calendar year.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 14 values

Vitamin A supplementation coverage rate (% of children ages 6-59 months) in nearby economies

• Angola — 7% (2020)
• Benin — 7% (2023)
• Botswana — 0% (2022)
• Burkina Faso — 99% (2023)
• Burundi — 77% (2023)
• Cameroon — 94% (2023)
• Central African Republic — 76% (2023)
• Chad — 95% (2023)
• Comoros

More health data for South Africa

• Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 8.76% (2025)
• Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 9.45% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female — 8.28 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 24.92% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male — 8.37 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 26.57% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, total — 16.66 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 25.72% (2025)
• Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population) — 8.27% (2025)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is South Africa's vitamin A supplementation coverage rate (% of children ages 6-59 months)?

41% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2004?

It is up 41 percentage points from 0% in 2004. The highest value was 50% in 2016 and the lowest 0% in 2004.

How does South Africa rank?

27th highest of 43 economies with data for 2023.

Is the latest change in vitamin A supplementation coverage rate (% of children ages 6-59 months) unusual for South Africa?

In 2023, South Africa's vitamin A supplementation coverage rate (% of children ages 6-59 months) fell 3 percentage points on 2022 (from 44% to 41%). Across the 8 yearly changes before that (2005 to 2022), the average change was +2.63 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 11.6 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.5 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SN.ITK.VITA.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: UNICEF Global Databases, UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), uri: https://data.unicef.org/topic/nutrition/vitamin-a-deficiency/, note: based on administrative reports from countries 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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