People practicing open defecation in El Salvador

El Salvador: People practicing open defecation was 1.2% in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
1.2%
Change on year
down 14.9%
World rank
78th
of 214 countries
All-time high
8.1%
in 2000
All-time low
1.2%
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

People practicing open defecation in El Salvador, 2000–2024

24682000201220242000: 8.1 % of population2001: 8 % of population2002: 7.9 % of population2003: 7.5 % of population2004: 7.2 % of population2005: 6.8 % of population2006: 6.5 % of population2007: 6.1 % of population2008: 5.7 % of population2009: 5.4 % of population2010: 5 % of population2011: 4.7 % of population2012: 4.3 % of population2013: 4 % of population2014: 3.7 % of population2015: 3.4 % of population2016: 3.1 % of population2017: 2.8 % of population2018: 2.6 % of population2019: 2.3 % of population2020: 2.1 % of population2021: 1.8 % of population2022: 1.6 % of population2023: 1.4 % of population2024: 1.2 % of population

Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene, World Health Organization (WHO). Measured in % of population.

Analysis

In 2024, people practicing open defecation in El Salvador stood at 1.2%. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

That represents a change of down 14.9% on the previous year and down 67.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, people practicing open defecation in El Salvador peaked at 8.1% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 1.2%, in 2024.

That places El Salvador 78th out of 214 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.

People practicing open defecation in El Salvador, year by year

Annual values for People practicing open defecation (% of population) in El Salvador, 2000 to 2024.
Year % of population Change
2000 8.1%
2001 8.0% -1.0%
2002 7.9% -1.0%
2003 7.5% -4.7%
2004 7.2% -4.9%
2005 6.8% -5.0%
2006 6.5% -5.2%
2007 6.1% -5.4%
2008 5.7% -6.2%
2009 5.4% -6.4%
2010 5.0% -6.6%
2011 4.7% -6.9%
2012 4.3% -7.1%
2013 4.0% -7.4%
2014 3.7% -7.7%
2015 3.4% -8.0%
2016 3.1% -8.4%
2017 2.8% -8.8%
2018 2.6% -9.3%
2019 2.3% -9.8%
2020 2.1% -10.5%
2021 1.8% -11.3%
2022 1.6% -12.2%
2023 1.4% -13.4%
2024 1.2% -14.9%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 6.9% 5.4% 8.1% 10
2010s 3.6% 2.3% 5.0% 10
2020s 1.6% 1.2% 2.1% 5

Countries ranked near El Salvador

  1. 75 Gabon 1.3% compare
  2. 76 Saint Kitts and Nevis 1.3% compare
  3. 77 Suriname 1.2% compare
  4. 79 Rwanda 1.1% compare
  5. 80 Guatemala 1.0% compare
  6. 81 Aruba 0.9% compare

See the full ranking of 261 places →

More health data for El Salvador

All data for El Salvador →

Frequently asked questions

What is people practicing open defecation in El Salvador?
People practicing open defecation in El Salvador was 1.2% in 2024, according to WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene, World Health Organization (WHO).
What is the highest people practicing open defecation recorded in El Salvador?
The highest recorded value was 8.1% in 2000.
What is the lowest people practicing open defecation recorded in El Salvador?
The lowest recorded value was 1.2% in 2024.
How does El Salvador rank for people practicing open defecation?
El Salvador ranks 78th out of 214 countries with data for 2024.
Is people practicing open defecation rising or falling in El Salvador?
Over the last ten years it is down 67.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this El Salvador data come from?
The figures come from WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene, World Health Organization (WHO), published as part of People practicing open defecation (% of population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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People practicing open defecation in El Salvador. Statizoid, drawing on WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene, World Health Organization (WHO). Retrieved 02 September 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/people-practicing-open-defecation-percent-of-population/el-salvador/

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About this data

Indicator
People practicing open defecation (% of population)
Unit
% of population
Source
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene, World Health Organization (WHO)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
261 places, 6,240 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

People practicing open defecation refers to the percentage of the population defecating in the open, such as in fields, forest, bushes, open bodies of water, on beaches, in other open spaces or disposed of with solid waste.