With 5.6% of population under-nourished, Thailand 52nd on hunger index
Report says 12.5% of children under age 5 are stunted
Thailand was ranked 52nd among 127 countries this year by the Global Hunger Index (GHI) with a score of 10.1.
Within ASEAN, Thailand ranks ahead of Vietnam 56 (score of 11.3), Malaysia 61 (12.7), the Philippines 67 (14.4), Cambodia 68 (14.7), Myanmar 74 (15.7), Indonesia 77 (16.9), Laos 87 (19.8), Timor-Leste 104 (27)
Thailand’s hunger situation was categorised as moderate, with 5.6% of the population undernourished, 12.4% of children under five are stunted, 7.2% of children under five are wasted, and 0.8% of children die before their fifth birthday.
The index is a peer-reviewed annual report, jointly published by Concern Worldwide, Welthungerhilfe, and the Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict.
It has been designed to raise awareness and understanding of the struggle against hunger, provide a way to compare levels of hunger between countries and regions, and call attention to areas where hunger levels are highest.
Each country’s GHI score was calculated based on a formula that combines four indicators that together capture the multidimensional nature of hunger:
- Undernourishment – the share of the population whose caloric intake is insufficient
- Child stunting – the share of children under the age of five who have low height for their age, reflecting chronic undernutrition
- Child wasting – the share of children under the age of five who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute undernutrition
- Child mortality – the share of children who die before their fifth birthday, reflecting in part the fatal mix of inadequate nutrition and unhealthy environments
According to the index little progress has been made in reducing hunger since 2016, and the prospects for achieving zero hunger by the target date of 2030 are grim, with 42 countries still experiencing alarming or serious hunger.
Somalia, Yemen, Chad, and Madagascar are the countries with the highest 2024 GHI scores; Burundi and South Sudan are also provisionally designated as alarming.
The index points to notable progress in Bangladesh, Mozambique, Nepal, Somalia, and Togo, although challenges remain.
The 2024 GHI score for the world is 18.3, considered moderate, down only slightly from the 2016 score of 18.8.
