People practicing open defecation in Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea: People practicing open defecation was 15.6% in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
15.6%
Change on year
up 0.6%
World rank
25th
of 214 countries
All-time high
15.6%
in 2024
All-time low
13.3%
in 2000
Years of data
25
2000–2024

People practicing open defecation in Papua New Guinea, 2000–2024

0510152000201220242000: 13.3 % of population2001: 13.3 % of population2002: 13.3 % of population2003: 13.3 % of population2004: 13.3 % of population2005: 13.5 % of population2006: 13.6 % of population2007: 13.7 % of population2008: 13.8 % of population2009: 13.9 % of population2010: 14.1 % of population2011: 14.2 % of population2012: 14.3 % of population2013: 14.4 % of population2014: 14.5 % of population2015: 14.7 % of population2016: 14.8 % of population2017: 14.9 % of population2018: 15 % of population2019: 15.1 % of population2020: 15.2 % of population2021: 15.3 % of population2022: 15.4 % of population2023: 15.5 % of population2024: 15.6 % of population

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for people practicing open defecation in Papua New Guinea is 15.6%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.

That represents a change of up 0.6% on the previous year and up 7.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, people practicing open defecation in Papua New Guinea peaked at 15.6% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 13.3%, in 2000.

Papua New Guinea ranks 25th of 214 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

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

People practicing open defecation in Papua New Guinea, year by year

Annual values for People practicing open defecation (% of population) in Papua New Guinea, 2000 to 2024.
Year % of population Change
2000 13.3%
2001 13.3% +0.0%
2002 13.3% +0.0%
2003 13.3% +0.0%
2004 13.3% +0.0%
2005 13.5% +0.9%
2006 13.6% +0.9%
2007 13.7% +0.9%
2008 13.8% +0.9%
2009 13.9% +0.9%
2010 14.1% +0.9%
2011 14.2% +0.9%
2012 14.3% +0.9%
2013 14.4% +0.8%
2014 14.5% +0.8%
2015 14.7% +0.8%
2016 14.8% +0.8%
2017 14.9% +0.8%
2018 15.0% +0.7%
2019 15.1% +0.7%
2020 15.2% +0.7%
2021 15.3% +0.7%
2022 15.4% +0.7%
2023 15.5% +0.7%
2024 15.6% +0.6%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 13.5% 13.3% 13.9% 10
2010s 14.6% 14.1% 15.1% 10
2020s 15.4% 15.2% 15.6% 5

Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea

  1. 22 Mauritania 16.2% compare
  2. 23 Mozambique 16.0% compare
  3. 24 Djibouti 15.9% compare
  4. 26 Sierra Leone 15.3% compare
  5. 27 Lesotho 14.8% compare
  6. 28 Somalia 14.4% compare

See the full ranking of 261 places →

More health data for Papua New Guinea

All data for Papua New Guinea →

Frequently asked questions

What is people practicing open defecation in Papua New Guinea?
People practicing open defecation in Papua New Guinea was 15.6% 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 Papua New Guinea?
The highest recorded value was 15.6% in 2024.
What is the lowest people practicing open defecation recorded in Papua New Guinea?
The lowest recorded value was 13.3% in 2000.
How does Papua New Guinea rank for people practicing open defecation?
Papua New Guinea ranks 25th out of 214 countries with data for 2024.
Is people practicing open defecation rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
Over the last ten years it is up 7.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Papua New Guinea 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 Papua New Guinea. Statizoid, drawing on WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene, World Health Organization (WHO). Retrieved 03 September 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/people-practicing-open-defecation-percent-of-population/papua-new-guinea/

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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.