Chapter 2 Sustainable Development Target 2.2: malnutrition
2.4 Anaemia among women aged 15 to 49 years
In 2023, anaemia affected 19.9 percent of women aged 15 to 49 years in the region, considerably below the global estimate of 30.7 percent (Table 10). All three subregions were below the world estimate, a trend that has persisted for the past 20 years. Among them, the Caribbean had the highest prevalence at 29.1 percent, followed by South America at 21.8 percent and Mesoamerica at 13.8 percent. Anaemia rates decreased in all three subregions from 2000 to 2013, after which they began to increase steadily through 2023 (Figure 15).
FIGURE 15.
Prevalence of anaemia among women aged 15 to 49 years in Latin America and the Caribbean by subregion
Note: The estimates refer to women aged 15 to 49 years, including pregnant, non-pregnant women and lactating women, and were adjusted for altitude and smoking. WHO defines anaemia in pregnant women as a haemoglobin concentration <110 g/L at sea level, and anaemia in non-pregnant women and lactating women as a haemoglobin concentration <120 g/L. Source: WHO. 2025. WHO Global Anaemia estimates, 2025 edition. [Cited 8 May 2025]. https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/themes/topics/anaemia_in_women_and_children Download: https://doi.org/10.4060/cd8421en-fig15
TABLE 10.
Prevalence of anaemia among women aged 15 to 49 years (percent)
2000
2010
2012
2015
2020
2023
World
29.3
27.6
27.6
28.0
29.2
30.7
Latin America and the Caribbean
26.1
18.4
17.7
17.7
18.6
19.9
Caribbean
31.9
24.9
24.6
25.1
27.0
29.1
Mesoamerica
19.4
10.9
10.6
11.0
12.3
13.8
South America
28.0
20.8
20.0
19.7
20.5
21.8
Note: The estimates refer to women aged 15 to 49 years, including pregnant, non-pregnant women and lactating women, and were adjusted for altitude and smoking. WHO defines anaemia in pregnant women as a haemoglobin concentration <110 g/L at sea level, and anaemia in non-pregnant women and lactating women as a haemoglobin concentration <120 g/L. Source: WHO. 2025. WHO Global Anaemia estimates, 2025 edition. [Cited 8 May 2025]. https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/themes/topics/anaemia_in_women_and_children
Comparing the latest estimates of anaemia prevalence in women aged 15 to 49 years with 2012 levels across countries in the region, the prevalence increased in 30 of the 32 countries. The only exceptions, where the prevalence decreased marginally, were the Plurinational State of Bolivia and Brazil. In the same period, the prevalence increased by 6.1 percentage points in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and Chile, and by 5 percentage points in Honduras. Only two countries in the region, Haiti and Guyana, had estimates above the global estimate in 2023, at 45.9 and 37.5 percent, respectively. It is worth noting that no country in the region is on track to achieve the 2030 target on anaemia, which is aimed at a 50 percent reduction compared to the 2012 baseline.
FIGURE 16.
Prevalence of anaemia among women aged 15 to 49 years in Latin America and the Caribbean by country and subregion
Note: The estimates refer to women aged 15 to 49 years, including pregnant, non-pregnant women and lactating women, and were adjusted for altitude and smoking. WHO defines anaemia in pregnant women as a haemoglobin concentration <110 g/L at sea level, and anaemia in non-pregnant women and lactating women as a haemoglobin concentration <120 g/L. Source: WHO. 2025. WHO Global Anaemia estimates, 2025 edition. [Cited 8 May 2025]. https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/themes/topics/anaemia_in_women_and_children Download: https://doi.org/10.4060/cd8421en-fig16
