People practicing open defecation in Kenya
Kenya: People practicing open defecation was 5.9% in 2024. ▼ Falling
People practicing open defecation in Kenya, 2000–2024
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 Kenya stood at 5.9%. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 6.7% on the previous year and down 42.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, people practicing open defecation in Kenya peaked at 16.9% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 5.9%, in 2024.
That places Kenya 45th out of 214 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
People practicing open defecation in Kenya, year by year
| Year | % of population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 16.9% | — |
| 2001 | 16.4% | -2.9% |
| 2002 | 16.0% | -3.0% |
| 2003 | 15.5% | -3.0% |
| 2004 | 15.0% | -3.1% |
| 2005 | 14.5% | -3.2% |
| 2006 | 14.0% | -3.3% |
| 2007 | 13.6% | -3.4% |
| 2008 | 13.1% | -3.5% |
| 2009 | 12.6% | -3.6% |
| 2010 | 12.2% | -3.7% |
| 2011 | 11.7% | -3.8% |
| 2012 | 11.2% | -3.9% |
| 2013 | 10.8% | -4.1% |
| 2014 | 10.3% | -4.2% |
| 2015 | 9.9% | -4.4% |
| 2016 | 9.4% | -4.6% |
| 2017 | 9.0% | -4.8% |
| 2018 | 8.5% | -5.0% |
| 2019 | 8.1% | -5.2% |
| 2020 | 7.6% | -5.4% |
| 2021 | 7.2% | -5.7% |
| 2022 | 6.8% | -6.0% |
| 2023 | 6.3% | -6.3% |
| 2024 | 5.9% | -6.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 14.8% | 12.6% | 16.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.1% | 8.1% | 12.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.8% | 5.9% | 7.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
More health data for Kenya
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.44 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.6026 % change on previous year (2090)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates 1,119 (2090)
- Un projection of annual infant deaths 16,059 (2100)
- Population ages 0-14, female, annual growth rate 0.3381 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, per capita 0.18 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, annual growth rate 0.3574 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per capita 0.1826 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is people practicing open defecation in Kenya?
- People practicing open defecation in Kenya was 5.9% 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 Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 16.9% in 2000.
- What is the lowest people practicing open defecation recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.9% in 2024.
- How does Kenya rank for people practicing open defecation?
- Kenya ranks 45th out of 214 countries with data for 2024.
- Is people practicing open defecation rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is down 42.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Kenya 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
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.