Somalia vs Zambia: Mean body mass index (BMI) in women
Somalia
23.9
in 2016
Zambia
23.7
in 2016
Somalia rank
156th
Zambia rank
159th
Mean body mass index (BMI) in women over time
- Somalia
- Zambia
How they compare
Somalia currently reports 23.9 against 23.7 in Zambia, a difference of 0.2.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 42 shared years of data; in 1975 it was Zambia ahead.
Somalia ranks 156th and Zambia ranks 159th of 190 countries.
Across the 5 decades both report, Somalia averaged higher in 2 and Zambia in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Somalia | Zambia | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 20.3 | 20.78 | 0.48 | Zambia |
| 1980s | 21.05 | 21.59 | 0.54 | Zambia |
| 1990s | 22.05 | 22.25 | 0.2 | Zambia |
| 2000s | 22.94 | 22.85 | 0.09 | Somalia |
| 2010s | 23.63 | 23.5 | 0.1286 | Somalia |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher mean body mass index (bmi) in women, Somalia or Zambia?
- Somalia, at 23.9 against 23.7 in Zambia as of 2016.
- What is the difference in mean body mass index (bmi) in women between Somalia and Zambia?
- 0.2, with Somalia ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Somalia and Zambia?
- 42 years are reported by both, from 1975 to 2016.
- How do Somalia and Zambia rank globally for mean body mass index (bmi) in women?
- Somalia ranks 156th and Zambia ranks 159th of 190 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) β with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Mean body mass index (BMI) in women. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Body mass index (BMI) is measured as a person's weight in kilograms (kg) divided by her height (in meters), squared. The WHO define a BMI <=18.5 as 'underweight'; 18.5 to <25 as 'normal/healthy'; 25.0 to <30 as 'overweight'; and >30.0 as 'obese'.