Countries by Prevalence of anemia among pregnant women (%)

Ranking 2023

Values shown in %.

Analysis

This metric measures the share of pregnant women with clinically low hemoglobin. Per the source definition, prevalence of anemia among pregnant women is the percentage of pregnant women whose hemoglobin level is less than 110 grams per liter at sea level. Values are expressed as percentages, and a higher rank indicates a higher prevalence of anemia, which represents a worse health outcome for this population. The dataset covers 192 countries, all with data from 2023, representing 100% recency within a 7-year window. All datapoints are classified as official-quality. No extreme outliers were detected at the 3-standard-deviation threshold, and year-over-year volatility averaged 0.6%, indicating stable estimates. The full range runs from 10.2% to 62.1%, a spread of over 508%.

West African nations dominate the top of the ranking. Mali ranks 1st at 62.1%, followed by Benin at 60.2% (rank 2), Cote d'Ivoire at 57.3% (rank 3), Niger at 55.9% (rank 4), and Gabon at 54.8% (rank 5). Mozambique (rank 6, 54.6%), Gambia (rank 7, 54.1%), Mauritania (rank 8, 53.9%), Sierra Leone (rank 9, 53.7%), and Somalia (rank 10, 52.8%) round out the top ten. India, the world's most populous democracy, ranks 20th at 46.6%, tied with Tanzania. The concentration of high-prevalence countries in Sub-Saharan Africa is consistent throughout the top 40 ranks.

The middle of the ranking contains several notable placements. Kazakhstan ranks 67th at 32.3%, placing it alongside Vanuatu at the same value. Kyrgyz Republic ranks 32nd at 42.5% and Tajikistan 40th at 39.6%, both higher than many Sub-Saharan African countries ranked below them. In the lower-prevalence range, Guatemala ranks 160th at 20.8%, tied with Saudi Arabia at the same value. Japan ranks 155th at 22.5%, lower than several European nations. Ethiopia ranks 109th at 26.2%, considerably lower than neighboring countries such as Eritrea (rank 34, 41.5%) and Sudan (rank 45, 38%), illustrating variation within the same region.

A key limitation of this metric is that hemoglobin thresholds are defined at sea level, which may affect accuracy for high-altitude populations where physiological hemoglobin levels are naturally elevated. Countries with large high-altitude populations, such as Bolivia (rank 117, 25.5%) or Peru (rank 89, 28.8%), may have prevalence figures that do not fully reflect altitude-adjusted clinical risk. Additionally, estimates for some countries may rely on modeled data rather than direct survey measurement, which can introduce uncertainty. The metric captures only the binary threshold of hemoglobin below 110 g/L and does not distinguish between severity levels of anemia or underlying causes. Cross-country comparability may also be affected by differences in the timing and coverage of underlying survey data.

Methodology

Data are drawn from the World Bank World Development Indicators, indicator code SH.PRG.ANEM, with a reference year of 2023. The metric is defined as follows: prevalence of anemia, pregnant women, is the percentage of pregnant women whose hemoglobin level is less than 110 grams per liter at sea level. The dataset covers 192 countries, all with data classified as recent (within 7 years of 2023) and 100% rated as official-quality. No extreme outliers were identified using a 3-standard-deviation threshold. Average year-over-year change across the dataset is 0.6%, indicating high stability. Values range from 10.2% (United States, rank 192) to 62.1% (Mali, rank 1), a spread of 508.8%. The metric does not account for altitude adjustment, severity gradations, or cause-specific anemia classification.

Sources

• World Bank