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

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, Sub-Saharan Africa's vitamin A supplementation coverage rate (% of children ages 6-59 months) rose 5.83 percentage points on 2022 (from 66.16% to 71.99%).

Across the 22 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2022), the average change was +2.35 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 12.29 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above 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 27.26 percentage points in 2021 and the biggest yearly fall was 24.14 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 2014 to 2023 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 3% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

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 24 values

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

• Afghanistan — 99% (2023)
• Djibouti — 0% (2019)
• Pakistan — 90% (2023)
• Yemen, Rep. — 11% (2022)

More health data for Sub-Saharan Africa

• Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 14.57% (2025)
• Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 15.02% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female — 263.91 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 39.81% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male — 269.77 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 40.95% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, total — 533.68 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 40.38% (2025)
• Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population)

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Questions people ask

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

71.99% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2000?

It is up 57.52 percentage points from 14.47% in 2000. The highest value was 83.12% in 2010 and the lowest 14.47% in 2000.

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

In 2023, Sub-Saharan Africa's vitamin A supplementation coverage rate (% of children ages 6-59 months) rose 5.83 percentage points on 2022 (from 66.16% to 71.99%). Across the 22 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2022), the average change was +2.35 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 12.29 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above 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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