People practicing open defecation (% of population) in East Timor
East Timor: People practicing open defecation (% of population) was 7.9% in 2024. ▼ Falling
People practicing open defecation in East Timor, 2002–2024
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 East Timor stood at 7.9%. That is the lowest value across all 23 years on record.
The figure is down 13.8% on the previous year and down 65.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, people practicing open defecation in East Timor peaked at 43.1% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 7.9%, in 2024.
That places East Timor 36th out of 214 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 23 years of available data.
People practicing open defecation (% of population) in East Timor, year by year
| Year | % of population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 43.1% | — |
| 2003 | 41.4% | -4.0% |
| 2004 | 39.7% | -4.1% |
| 2005 | 38.0% | -4.3% |
| 2006 | 36.3% | -4.4% |
| 2007 | 34.6% | -4.6% |
| 2008 | 32.9% | -4.8% |
| 2009 | 31.3% | -5.1% |
| 2010 | 29.6% | -5.3% |
| 2011 | 27.9% | -5.6% |
| 2012 | 26.3% | -5.9% |
| 2013 | 24.6% | -6.3% |
| 2014 | 23.0% | -6.7% |
| 2015 | 21.3% | -7.1% |
| 2016 | 19.7% | -7.7% |
| 2017 | 18.1% | -8.3% |
| 2018 | 16.5% | -9.0% |
| 2019 | 14.8% | -9.8% |
| 2020 | 13.2% | -10.9% |
| 2021 | 11.7% | -11.5% |
| 2022 | 10.4% | -11.0% |
| 2023 | 9.1% | -12.2% |
| 2024 | 7.9% | -13.8% |
East Timor compared with similar countries
- East Timor's 7.9% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 6.7%, 1.2× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- East Timor's 7.9% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.2%, 49.4× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 37.1% | 31.3% | 43.1% | 8 |
| 2010s | 22.2% | 14.8% | 29.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 10.5% | 7.9% | 13.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near East Timor
More health data for East Timor
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.22 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.894 % change on previous year (2090)
- Un projection of annual infant deaths 162 (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate -2.67 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.051 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate -2.04 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per capita 0.0538 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is people practicing open defecation in East Timor?
- People practicing open defecation in East Timor was 7.9% 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 East Timor?
- The highest recorded value was 43.1% in 2002.
- What is the lowest people practicing open defecation recorded in East Timor?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.9% in 2024.
- How does East Timor rank for people practicing open defecation?
- East Timor ranks 36th out of 214 countries with data for 2024.
- Is people practicing open defecation rising or falling in East Timor?
- Over the last ten years it is down 65.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this East Timor 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 — 23 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.