Photo: Mishimito · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale
Topic 05 of 18 · Country Index 2026
Gambia: Health & Wellbeing
How long, and how well fed, do people live?
Gambia is placed 158th of 200 countries on health & wellbeing in the Country Index 2026, from 4 of its 4 key statistics. Readings behind it: Life Expectancy at Birth 65.86 (2023); Under-Five Mortality Rate 42.41 (2024).
Health & Wellbeing
158th
of 200 countries placed
Placed from 4 of 4 key statistics
- 65.86Life Expectancy at Birth, 2023Years a newborn would live at current death rates
- 42.41Under-Five Mortality Rate, 2024Deaths before age five (per 1,000 live births)
- 17.48Stunting Prevalence in Children Under Five, 2024Children under 5 who are stunted (%)
- 21.7Prevalence of Severe Food Insecurity, 2023Population in severe food insecurity (%)
01The evidence
The 4 key statistics that decide it
Only these place Gambia on health & wellbeing — one vote each. Every value is the publisher’s own, read at the edition the Country Index 2026 used — or, for a survey-based key, each country’s latest reading; the grey ticks are every other country it was compared with, lowest on the left.
Key 1 of 4
Life Expectancy at Birth
UN DESA Population Division
Why it is a key: How long people actually live — the one measure of adult health on this site. Child mortality, which it correlates with, is a measure of a health system's reach in the first five years; this is the whole span.
2023 edition · data for 2023 · CC BY 3.0 IGO
65.86
Years a newborn would live at current death rates
Higher is better
Gambia: 65.86. Across the 222 countries in this edition, values run from 54.46 (Nigeria) to 86.37 (Monaco); the world median is 74.63.
- World median
- 74.63
- Best in Western Africa
- 76.06 Cabo Verde
- Land neighbours
- Senegal 68.68
Each grey tick is one of 222 countries in the 2023 edition.
Key 2 of 4
Under-Five Mortality Rate
UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME)
Why it is a key: Deaths before a fifth birthday, the most widely used summary of whether a health system reaches people.
2024 edition · data for 2024 · CC BY 3.0 IGO
42.41
Deaths before age five (per 1,000 live births)
Lower is better
Gambia: 42.41. Across the 200 countries in this edition, values run from 1.26 (San Marino) to 115.65 (Nigeria); the world median is 14.54.
- World median
- 14.54
- Best in Western Africa
- 11.14 Cabo Verde
- Land neighbours
- Senegal 36.53
Each grey tick is one of 200 countries in the 2024 edition.
Key 3 of 4
Stunting Prevalence in Children Under Five
UNICEF, WHO and World Bank Group (Joint Malnutrition Estimates)
Why it is a key: Children under five who are too short for their age — the mark chronic undernutrition leaves on a body, which says what early deprivation did rather than how many died of it.
Latest reading per country, 2014–2024 · Gambia’s is from 2020 · CC BY 3.0 IGO
17.48
Children under 5 who are stunted (%)
Lower is better
Gambia: 17.48. Across the 162 countries at their latest reading, values run from 0.518 (Latvia) to 52.8 (Burundi); the world median is 13.8.
- World median
- 13.8
- Best in Western Africa
- 6 Cabo Verde
- Land neighbours
- Senegal 17.47
Each grey tick is one of 162 countries at its latest reading, 2014–2024.
Key 4 of 4
Prevalence of Severe Food Insecurity
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Why it is a key: The share of people who went without food, established by asking them rather than by modelling the supply.
2023 edition · data for 2023 · CC BY 4.0
21.7
Population in severe food insecurity (%)
Lower is better
Gambia: 21.7. Across the 133 countries in this edition, values run from 0 (Armenia) to 63.1 (South Sudan); the world median is 4.7.
- World median
- 4.7
- Best in Western Africa
- 2.6 Mali
- Land neighbours
- Senegal 4
Each grey tick is one of 133 countries in the 2023 edition.
02Over time
Which way Gambia is moving
Each key’s published value, edition by edition, beside the world median. The Country Index 2026 is the first edition of the standing, so the standing itself has no history to chart yet.
Life Expectancy at Birth
Years a newborn would live at current death rates · higher is better
GambiaWorld median
Gambia rose from 56.9 in 2000 to 65.86 in 2023; the world median went from 70.68 to 74.63.
Every year’s figures
Year Gambia World median 2023 65.86 74.630 2022 64.86 74.313 2021 63.85 72.433 2020 64.42 73.063 2019 64.43 74.196 2018 64.03 74.081 2017 63.71 74.029 2016 63.39 74.013 2015 62.97 73.783 2014 62.58 73.330 2013 62.25 73.386 2012 61.90 73.210 2011 61.56 73.003 2010 61.17 72.827 2009 60.73 72.426 2008 60.47 72.264 2007 60.00 72.113 2006 59.67 72.027 2005 59.11 71.876 2004 58.75 71.477 2003 58.22 71.409 2002 57.74 71.173 2001 57.28 70.926 2000 56.90 70.678 Under-Five Mortality Rate
Deaths before age five (per 1,000 live births) · lower is better
GambiaWorld median
Gambia fell from 112.82 in 2000 to 42.41 in 2024; the world median went from 30.43 to 14.54.
Every year’s figures
Year Gambia World median 2024 42 14.5 2023 44 15.2 2022 45 14.7 2021 47 15.1 2020 49 15.3 2019 50 15.7 2018 52 16.3 2017 54 16.8 2016 57 17.5 2015 59 17.9 2014 61 18.3 2013 64 18.7 2012 67 18.8 2011 70 19.0 2010 73 19.2 2009 76 20.8 2008 79 20.7 2007 83 21.8 2006 87 22.8 2005 91 24.0 2004 95 25.9 2003 99 26.9 2002 104 28.0 2001 108 29.1 2000 113 30.4 Prevalence of Severe Food Insecurity
Population in severe food insecurity (%) · lower is better
GambiaWorld median
Gambia fell from 23.6 in 2016 to 21.7 in 2023; the world median went from 3.3 to 4.7.
Every year’s figures
Year Gambia World median 2023 21.7 4.7 2022 25.5 5.4 2021 27.0 5.7 2020 27.1 5.6 2019 25.7 4.5 2018 24.6 3.9 2017 23.6 3.6 2016 23.6 3.3 2015 — 3.3
03In context
Gambia beside its neighbours
A position reads best beside the countries around it. Every position below is a place among all 200 countries on health & wellbeing, never a place within the region.
Gambia and the countries it borders
The standing is each country’s place among all 200 placed on the topic; the other columns are the publishers’ own values, read at the edition the standing used.
| Country | Standing | Life Expectancy at BirthYears a newborn would live at current death rates | Under-Five Mortality RateDeaths before age five (per 1,000 live births) | Stunting Prevalence in Children Under FiveChildren under 5 who are stunted (%) | Prevalence of Severe Food InsecurityPopulation in severe food insecurity (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Senegal | 134th | 68.68 | 36.53 | 17.47 | 4 |
| Gambia | 158th | 65.86 | 42.41 | 17.48 | 21.7 |
“—” means the publisher gives no reading for that country in that edition. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed.
Across Western Africa
Every country in the sub-region, by its place among all 200.
Placed either side on health & wellbeing
The countries immediately above and below Gambia in the topic’s list.
04Context, no vote
Where Gambia is ahead of the world, and behind
16 more statistics filed under health & wellbeing, published in full and deliberately given no vote in the standing. Select a row for the publisher, the rank and the links.
Ahead of the world median1
Statistics on which Gambia does better than the middle country measured.
Exclusive Breastfeeding Under Six MonthsUNICEF · 2024 · world median 40.7453.6340.74No earlier reading
Gambia: 53.63 · world median 40.74 · Infants under 6 months exclusively breastfed (%). UNICEF, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 3.497 to 83.3; higher is better.
Position 35th of 136 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Behind the world median12
Statistics on which Gambia does worse than the middle country measured.
Global Multidimensional Poverty IndexOPHI · 2025 · world median 0.0390.1980.039▲ Improved since 2018
Gambia: 0.198 · world median 0.039 · MPI (0–1). Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 0.517; lower is better.
Position 32nd of 109 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Global Violent DeathsSmall Arms Survey · 2021 · world median 4.029.964.02▼ Worsened since 2011
Gambia: 9.96 · world median 4.02 · Violent deaths per 100,000 people. Small Arms Survey, 2021 edition, data for 2021.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 112.28; lower is better.
Position 59th of 206 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Female Genital Mutilation PrevalenceUNICEF · 2024 · world median 34.172.634.1No earlier reading
Gambia: 72.6 · world median 34.1 · Women aged 15-49 who have undergone FGM (%). UNICEF, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0.3 to 99.2; lower is better.
Life Expectancy at Age 65UN DESA Population Division · 2023 · world median 16.3914.1316.39No real change since 2013
Gambia: 14.13 · world median 16.39 · Further years a 65-year-old would live at current death rates. UN DESA Population Division, 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 12.13 to 23.21; higher is better.
Position 168th of 222 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Human Capital IndexWorld Bank Group · 2020 · world median 0.5640.4220.564▲ Improved since 2010
Gambia: 0.422 · world median 0.564 · HCI score (0–1). World Bank Group, 2020 edition, data for 2020.
Published values in that edition run from 0.292 to 0.879; higher is better.
Position 135th of 172 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Infant Mortality RateUN IGME · 2024 · world median 12.2632.712.26▲ Improved since 2014
Gambia: 32.7 · world median 12.26 · Deaths before age one (per 1,000 live births). UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 1.214 to 71.87; lower is better.
Position 41st of 200 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Prevalence of UndernourishmentFAO · 2023 · world median 5.216.85.2▼ Worsened since 2013
Gambia: 16.8 · world median 5.2 · Population undernourished (%). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 2.5 to 54.2; lower is better.
Position 33rd of 104 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Dietary Energy SupplyFAO · 2024 · world median 2,9822,4312,982▼ Worsened since 2014
Gambia: 2,431 · world median 2,982 · Dietary energy supply (kcal per person per day). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 1,757 to 3,962; higher is better.
Position 134th of 155 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Human Development IndexUNDP Human Development Report Office · 2023 · world median 0.7620.5240.762▲ Improved since 2013
Gambia: 0.524 · world median 0.762 · HDI score (0–1). UNDP Human Development Report Office, 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0.388 to 0.972; higher is better.
Ranked 170th of 193 by UNDP Human Development Report Office.
Gender Inequality IndexUNDP Human Development Report Office · 2023 · world median 0.3510.5780.351▲ Improved since 2013
Gambia: 0.578 · world median 0.351 · GII (0 = full equality, 1 = maximum inequality). UNDP Human Development Report Office, 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0.003 to 0.838; lower is better.
Ranked 154th of 172 by UNDP Human Development Report Office.
Maternal Mortality RatioMMEIG · 2023 · world median 46.65354.3546.65▲ Improved since 2013
Gambia: 354.35 · world median 46.65 · Maternal deaths per 100,000 live births. UN Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-Agency Group (MMEIG), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0.11 to 992.83; lower is better.
Position 20th of 195 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Violent Discipline of ChildrenUNICEF · 2025 · world median 75.889.275.8No earlier reading
Gambia: 89.2 · world median 75.8 · Children aged 1-14 experiencing violent discipline (%). UNICEF, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 37.6 to 94; lower is better.
Position 9th of 90 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
No better end3
These describe the shape of a country — more is not better or worse, only different — so they are never ahead or behind.
Average Weekly Hours WorkedILO · 2025 · world median 38.8937.8538.89No real change since 2015
Gambia: 37.85 · world median 38.89 · Average weekly hours actually worked per employed person. International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 23.64 to 54.7.
Position 108th of 182 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Pesticide Use per HectareFAO · 2024 · world median 1.730.981.73No real change since 2014
Gambia: 0.98 · world median 1.73 · Pesticide use (kg per hectare of cropland). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 37.72.
Position 115th of 178 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Children with Functional DifficultiesUNICEF · 2024 · world median 1310.113No earlier reading
Gambia: 10.1 · world median 13 · Children aged 5-17 with a functional difficulty (%). UNICEF, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0.9 to 35.2.
No current reading for Gambia
Births Attended by Skilled Health Staff (last 2018), Fatal Occupational Injuries, Global Report on Food Crises (last 2022) and INFORM Severity Index (last 2022). Listed rather than hidden, so the page can be checked against it.
05Country Index 2026
Health & Wellbeing among Gambia’s 16 topics
Health & Wellbeing is Gambia’s 8th best-placed topic of 16. Strongest first; each marker sits at the position divided by that topic’s field, so fields of different sizes compare fairly.
- Environment & Sustainability12th of 1812/3 keys
- Peace & Security27th of 1774/4 keys
- Governance & Institutions86th of 1944/4 keys
- Democracy & Civil Liberties100th of 1983/3 keys
- Risk & Resilience143rd of 1923/3 keys
- Gender & Equality142nd of 1834/4 keys
- Poverty & Inequality124th of 1592/2 keys
- Health & Wellbeing158th of 2004/4 keys
- Education & Knowledge151st of 1714/4 keys
- Work & Labour167th of 1824/4 keys
- Digital & Technology183rd of 1983/3 keys
- Development & Human Capital184th of 1963/3 keys
- Economy & Innovationjoint 168th of 1763/4 keys
- Food & Agriculture168th of 1752/4 keys
- Energy189th of 1932/3 keys
- Mobility & Trade146th of 1473/3 keys
06The top of the list
Who leads on health & wellbeing
The three countries placed highest of 200, and the leaders Gambia can most readily be measured against.
1
San MarinoSouthern Europe
1st of 200 · 2 of 4 keys
Photo: Matl derivative work: Jjtkk · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale
2
MonacoWestern Europe
2nd of 200 · 2 of 4 keys
Photo: Martin Weber derivative work: Jjtkk · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale
3
AndorraSouthern Europe
3rd of 200 · 2 of 4 keys
Photo: Tiia Monto derivative work: Jjtkk · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale
Placed highest nearby
Highest placed on all 4 keys
South Korea5th4/4 keysHighest in Africa
Cabo Verde78th4/4 keysThis page
Gambia158th4/4 keys
Positions out of 200 placed on the topic. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed, and the top of the list is often held on fewer of them.
07Analysis
Charts and analysis about Gambia and health & wellbeing
On health & wellbeing
Global Hunger Index 2025: Countries with the Most Alarming Hunger Crisis
Thirteen countries scored across four editions — 2000, 2008, 2016 and 2025 — and five the report could not score at all. DR Congo and South Sudan share 121st place on 37.5.
On health & wellbeing
World Happiness Report 2025: Finland Leads Again as the US and UK Face Major Declines
The ten highest life evaluations of 2025, drawn on a world map, and the six things the report uses to explain them. Costa Rica and Mexico are the only two outside Europe and the Middle East.
08Questions
Gambia on health & wellbeing: questions answered
Every answer is built from the numbers on this page, so none can say something the page does not.
How does Gambia rank on health & wellbeing?
Gambia is placed 158th of 200 countries on Health & Wellbeing in the Country Index 2026, from 4 of its 4 key statistics (Life Expectancy at Birth, Under-Five Mortality Rate, Stunting Prevalence in Children Under Five and Prevalence of Severe Food Insecurity). The position is this site’s ordering of published statistics, not a rank any publisher printed.
What is the latest Life Expectancy at Birth figure for Gambia?
65.86 in 2023 (years a newborn would live at current death rates), according to UN DESA Population Division. The world median in the same edition was 74.63.
What is the latest Under-Five Mortality Rate figure for Gambia?
42.41 in 2024 (deaths before age five (per 1,000 live births)), according to UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME). The world median in the same edition was 14.54.
How does Gambia compare with Senegal on health & wellbeing?
Senegal is placed 134th of 200, and Gambia 158th. Life Expectancy at Birth: Senegal 68.68, Gambia 65.86; Under-Five Mortality Rate: Senegal 36.53, Gambia 42.41; Stunting Prevalence in Children Under Five: Senegal 17.47, Gambia 17.48; Prevalence of Severe Food Insecurity: Senegal 4, Gambia 21.7.
How have Gambia’s health & wellbeing figures changed?
Life Expectancy at Birth rose from 56.9 in 2000 to 65.86 in 2023; Under-Five Mortality Rate fell from 112.82 in 2000 to 42.41 in 2024; Prevalence of Severe Food Insecurity fell from 23.6 in 2016 to 21.7 in 2023.
Which health & wellbeing statistics are missing for Gambia?
No current reading is published for Gambia on Births Attended by Skilled Health Staff, Fatal Occupational Injuries, Global Report on Food Crises and INFORM Severity Index. They are listed rather than hidden, so the evidence on the page can be checked against it.
09Keep reading
Explore further
Gambia, topic by topic
- Governance & Institutions86th of 194
- Economy & Innovation=168th of 176
- Work & Labour167th of 182
- Education & Knowledge151st of 171
- Development & Human Capital184th of 196
- Environment & Sustainability12th of 181
- Gender & Equality142nd of 183
- Democracy & Civil Liberties100th of 198
- Peace & Security27th of 177
- Risk & Resilience143rd of 192
- Mobility & Trade146th of 147
- Food & Agriculture168th of 175
- Poverty & Inequality124th of 159
- Energy189th of 193
- Digital & Technology183rd of 198
- The full Gambia profile
Nearby, on health & wellbeing
The key statistics, for every country
10Method
Method, sources and how to cite
What this topic does not measure
Health spending, hospital beds and doctors per person are not measured, because more of any of them does not guarantee better outcomes. Mental health and self-reported happiness are not part of this topic. Food supply per person is measured under Food & Agriculture. Maternal mortality and many other indicators are published here as context; maternal mortality is a key in Development & Human Capital instead.
How the Health & Wellbeing standing is decided, step by step
A standing is a place in a list, not a mark out of anything. This one is part of the Country Index 2026, and it is worked out like this.
- A few key indicators decide it; the rest are context. 4 indicators on this topic are keys and 20 are charted alongside them without a vote. That split is the point: if every statistic voted, importing five more of one kind would quietly change what the topic is about.
- Each key is read at one edition. ⚠ The keys behind this standing do not all describe the same year — they run from 2023 to 2024, because publishers release on their own schedules. Read the standing as “how this country places now”, not as a snapshot of one year.
- Every country’s published value is turned into a place within that one key’s own field, and then expressed as a share of that field — how far down this key’s list the country sits, rather than how many countries are above it. Keys where a higher published number is worse (terrorism, hunger, disaster risk) are turned round first, so the good end is always the same end.
- Dividing by the field first is the whole reason this works. A place carries the size of its list inside it: 22nd of 44 and 108th of 215 are the same showing, and averaging the numbers 22 and 108 says loudly that they are not. Fields on this site run from about 44 countries to about 215, so averaging raw places would reward a country for happening to be measured in small ones. Dividing each place by its own field removes the size and leaves only the showing.
- The shares are averaged, plainly. One key, one vote — no key is weighted above another, because any weighting would be this site’s opinion presented as a measurement. Countries are then put in order by that average, and the average itself is never published. It is our arithmetic with nothing anchoring it, so printing it would invite it to be read as a measurement somebody made. The position it produces, the band, and the keys it was built from are all published instead — every one of them checkable against the tables on this page.
- A country needs 2 of this topic’s 4 keys — half, rounded up, and never fewer than 2. A standing built from one reading, printed beside one built from four, is two different things sharing a column heading. 200 countries clear the bar here.
- A key has to earn its vote every edition. It must measure at least 120 countries (below that it starts measuring who was surveyed rather than the world), it must not have more than 10% of its field tied at either end, and it must not repeat another key in the same topic — Spearman correlation above 0.92 counts as repeating. A topic needs at least 2 surviving keys to place anyone at all; this one has 4.
- A standing is relative, and the grouping is ours. It says where a country places against the others measured alongside it, so it moves when they move. The publishers listed on this page did not agree to be read together, and each measures its subject its own way: the underlying numbers are theirs, the ordering on top is this site’s — the same method as the rest of the Country Index, applied to one subject instead of all of them.
The key statistics and their licences
- Life Expectancy at Birth — UN DESA Population Division, CC BY 3.0 IGO
- Under-Five Mortality Rate — UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME), CC BY 3.0 IGO
- Stunting Prevalence in Children Under Five — UNICEF, WHO and World Bank Group (Joint Malnutrition Estimates), CC BY 3.0 IGO
- Prevalence of Severe Food Insecurity — Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), CC BY 4.0
The other 16 statistics on this page come from 10 publishers, each named beside its numbers, with every edition and licence on the datasets pages.
The standing itself is part of the Country Index 2026, published under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photographs
Gambia’s banner and the countries placed highest, from their profiles: Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale, each used under the licence named.
- Gambia (banner) — Mishimito, CC BY 2.0
- San Marino — Matl derivative work: Jjtkk, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Monaco — Martin Weber derivative work: Jjtkk, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Andorra — Tiia Monto derivative work: Jjtkk, CC BY-SA 3.0
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Gambia: Health & Wellbeing — standing and statistics, Country Index 2026. https://nationsinquiry.com/countries/gambia/health