People practicing open defecation in Madagascar

Madagascar: People practicing open defecation was 27.0% in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
27.0%
Change on year
down 2.5%
World rank
13th
of 214 countries
All-time high
44.4%
in 2000
All-time low
27.0%
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

People practicing open defecation in Madagascar, 2000–2024

0102030402000201220242000: 44.4 % of population2001: 43.8 % of population2002: 43.1 % of population2003: 42.4 % of population2004: 41.7 % of population2005: 41 % of population2006: 40.2 % of population2007: 39.4 % of population2008: 38.7 % of population2009: 37.9 % of population2010: 37.2 % of population2011: 36.4 % of population2012: 35.7 % of population2013: 34.9 % of population2014: 34.2 % of population2015: 33.4 % of population2016: 32.7 % of population2017: 32 % of population2018: 31.2 % of population2019: 30.5 % of population2020: 29.8 % of population2021: 29.1 % of population2022: 28.4 % of population2023: 27.7 % of population2024: 27 % of population

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

Analysis

Madagascar recorded 27.0% for people practicing open defecation in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.5% on the previous year and down 21.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, people practicing open defecation in Madagascar peaked at 44.4% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 27.0%, in 2024.

That places Madagascar 13th out of 214 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.

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

People practicing open defecation in Madagascar, year by year

Annual values for People practicing open defecation (% of population) in Madagascar, 2000 to 2024.
Year % of population Change
2000 44.4%
2001 43.8% -1.5%
2002 43.1% -1.5%
2003 42.4% -1.6%
2004 41.7% -1.6%
2005 41.0% -1.8%
2006 40.2% -1.9%
2007 39.4% -1.9%
2008 38.7% -1.9%
2009 37.9% -2.0%
2010 37.2% -2.0%
2011 36.4% -2.0%
2012 35.7% -2.1%
2013 34.9% -2.1%
2014 34.2% -2.1%
2015 33.4% -2.2%
2016 32.7% -2.2%
2017 32.0% -2.2%
2018 31.2% -2.3%
2019 30.5% -2.3%
2020 29.8% -2.3%
2021 29.1% -2.4%
2022 28.4% -2.4%
2023 27.7% -2.5%
2024 27.0% -2.5%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 41.3% 37.9% 44.4% 10
2010s 33.8% 30.5% 37.2% 10
2020s 28.4% 27.0% 29.8% 5

Countries ranked near Madagascar

  1. 10 Kiribati 32.4% compare
  2. 11 Togo 32.2% compare
  3. 12 Burkina Faso 29.9% compare
  4. 14 Angola 25.7% compare
  5. 15 Central African Republic 24.7% compare
  6. 16 Nigeria 18.0% compare

See the full ranking of 261 places →

More health data for Madagascar

All data for Madagascar →

Frequently asked questions

What is people practicing open defecation in Madagascar?
People practicing open defecation in Madagascar was 27.0% 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 Madagascar?
The highest recorded value was 44.4% in 2000.
What is the lowest people practicing open defecation recorded in Madagascar?
The lowest recorded value was 27.0% in 2024.
How does Madagascar rank for people practicing open defecation?
Madagascar ranks 13th out of 214 countries with data for 2024.
Is people practicing open defecation rising or falling in Madagascar?
Over the last ten years it is down 21.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Madagascar 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).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

People practicing open defecation in Madagascar. Statizoid, drawing on WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene, World Health Organization (WHO). Retrieved 27 August 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/people-practicing-open-defecation-percent-of-population/madagascar/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://health.statizoid.com/stat/people-practicing-open-defecation-percent-of-population/madagascar/">People practicing open defecation in Madagascar</a> — Statizoid

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.