People practicing open defecation, rural in Costa Rica

Costa Rica: People practicing open defecation, rural was 0.1% in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
0.1%
Change on year
down 28.1%
World rank
94th
of 171 countries
All-time high
1.2%
in 2000
All-time low
0.1%
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

People practicing open defecation, rural in Costa Rica, 2000–2024

00.250.50.7511.22000201220242000: 1.2 % of rural population2001: 1.1 % of rural population2002: 1.1 % of rural population2003: 1 % of rural population2004: 0.991 % of rural population2005: 0.947 % of rural population2006: 0.903 % of rural population2007: 0.859 % of rural population2008: 0.815 % of rural population2009: 0.771 % of rural population2010: 0.727 % of rural population2011: 0.683 % of rural population2012: 0.639 % of rural population2013: 0.596 % of rural population2014: 0.552 % of rural population2015: 0.508 % of rural population2016: 0.464 % of rural population2017: 0.42 % of rural population2018: 0.376 % of rural population2019: 0.332 % of rural population2020: 0.288 % of rural population2021: 0.244 % of rural population2022: 0.2 % of rural population2023: 0.156 % of rural population2024: 0.112 % of rural population

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

Analysis

In 2024, people practicing open defecation, rural in Costa Rica stood at 0.1%. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 28.1% on the previous year and down 79.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, people practicing open defecation, rural in Costa Rica peaked at 1.2% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 0.1%, in 2024.

That places Costa Rica 94th out of 171 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, rural in Costa Rica, year by year

Annual values for People practicing open defecation, rural (% of rural population) in Costa Rica, 2000 to 2024.
Year % of rural population Change
2000 1.2%
2001 1.1% -3.8%
2002 1.1% -3.9%
2003 1.0% -4.1%
2004 1.0% -4.2%
2005 0.9% -4.4%
2006 0.9% -4.6%
2007 0.9% -4.9%
2008 0.8% -5.1%
2009 0.8% -5.4%
2010 0.7% -5.7%
2011 0.7% -6.0%
2012 0.6% -6.4%
2013 0.6% -6.9%
2014 0.6% -7.4%
2015 0.5% -8.0%
2016 0.5% -8.7%
2017 0.4% -9.5%
2018 0.4% -10.5%
2019 0.3% -11.7%
2020 0.3% -13.2%
2021 0.2% -15.3%
2022 0.2% -18.0%
2023 0.2% -22.0%
2024 0.1% -28.1%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 1.0% 0.8% 1.2% 10
2010s 0.5% 0.3% 0.7% 10
2020s 0.2% 0.1% 0.3% 5

Countries ranked near Costa Rica

  1. 91 Republic of Moldova 0.2% compare
  2. 92 Turks and Caicos Islands 0.2% compare
  3. 93 Montenegro 0.1% compare
  4. 95 Jordan 0.1% compare
  5. 96 Uzbekistan 0.1% compare
  6. 97 Samoa 0.1% compare

See the full ranking of 218 places →

More health data for Costa Rica

All data for Costa Rica →

Frequently asked questions

What is people practicing open defecation, rural in Costa Rica?
People practicing open defecation, rural in Costa Rica was 0.1% 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, rural recorded in Costa Rica?
The highest recorded value was 1.2% in 2000.
What is the lowest people practicing open defecation, rural recorded in Costa Rica?
The lowest recorded value was 0.1% in 2024.
How does Costa Rica rank for people practicing open defecation, rural?
Costa Rica ranks 94th out of 171 countries with data for 2024.
Is people practicing open defecation, rural rising or falling in Costa Rica?
Over the last ten years it is down 79.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Costa Rica 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, rural (% of rural population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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People practicing open defecation, rural in Costa Rica. Statizoid, drawing on WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene, World Health Organization (WHO). Retrieved 08 September 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/people-practicing-open-defecation-rural-percent-of-rural-population/costa-rica/

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About this data

Indicator
People practicing open defecation, rural (% of rural population)
Unit
% of rural 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
218 places, 5,299 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.