Hunger Facts

Learn about hunger in developing countries and how it affects impoverished children and their families.

Hunger Facts
Hunger FactsGet the facts about hunger and how it affects children and their families.
  • One person in seven battles hunger every day.
  • Approximately 963 million people across the world are hungry.
  • More than 9 million children under age 5 die every year, and malnutrition accounts for more than one-third of these deaths. Most of these children live in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.
  • About 5.6 million deaths of children worldwide are related to under-nutrition. This accounts for 53 percent of the total deaths for children under 5.
  • More than 140 million or 25 percent of all children in developing countries are underweight and at risk from the long-term effects of malnourishment.
  • Nearly 15 percent of babies in developing countries are born with a low birth weight compared with only 7 percent of babies in industrialized countries.
  • More than 6 million children die from malnutrition each year.
  • Worldwide, 161 million preschool children suffer from chronic malnutrition.
  • Already 923 million people worldwide are undernourished, and there are more than 9 million deaths related to hunger each year.