People practicing open defecation, rural in Low & middle income
Low & middle income: People practicing open defecation, rural was 9.9% in 2024. ▼ Falling
People practicing open defecation, rural in Low & middle income, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene, World Health Organization (WHO). Measured in % of rural population.
Analysis
Low & middle income recorded 9.9% for people practicing open defecation, rural in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of down 11.7% on the previous year and down 57.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, people practicing open defecation, rural in Low & middle income peaked at 39.1% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 9.9%, in 2024.
Low & middle income ranks 15th of 47 groups on this measure, 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 Low & middle income, year by year
| Year | % of rural population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 39.1% | — |
| 2001 | 38.2% | -2.3% |
| 2002 | 37.2% | -2.8% |
| 2003 | 36.2% | -2.6% |
| 2004 | 35.1% | -3.0% |
| 2005 | 34.0% | -3.2% |
| 2006 | 32.8% | -3.4% |
| 2007 | 31.7% | -3.4% |
| 2008 | 30.5% | -3.8% |
| 2009 | 29.3% | -3.9% |
| 2010 | 28.1% | -4.3% |
| 2011 | 27.1% | -3.3% |
| 2012 | 25.9% | -4.5% |
| 2013 | 24.7% | -4.7% |
| 2014 | 23.4% | -5.1% |
| 2015 | 22.2% | -5.3% |
| 2016 | 20.9% | -5.9% |
| 2017 | 19.7% | -5.6% |
| 2018 | 18.4% | -6.8% |
| 2019 | 17.0% | -7.4% |
| 2020 | 15.6% | -8.3% |
| 2021 | 14.2% | -8.8% |
| 2022 | 12.8% | -9.9% |
| 2023 | 11.3% | -11.9% |
| 2024 | 9.9% | -11.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 34.4% | 29.3% | 39.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 22.7% | 17.0% | 28.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 12.8% | 9.9% | 15.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Low & middle income
- 12 Kiribati 49.7% compare
- 13 Sao Tome and Principe 43.2% compare
- 14 Burkina Faso 42.3% compare
- 15 Central African Republic 38.8% compare
- 16 Madagascar 36.5% compare
- 17 Mauritania 36.3% compare
- 18 Haiti 31.5% compare
More health data for Low & middle income
- Population ages 55-59, female, annual growth rate 2 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, male, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, male, annual growth rate 2.07 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, female, per capita 0.0248 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 25-29, male, per capita 0.0388 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 30-34, female, annual growth rate -0.6511 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 50-54, female, per capita 0.0271 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 50-54, male, annual growth rate 0.226 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is people practicing open defecation, rural in Low & middle income?
- People practicing open defecation, rural in Low & middle income was 9.9% 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, rural recorded in Low & middle income?
- The highest recorded value was 39.1% in 2000.
- What is the lowest people practicing open defecation, rural recorded in Low & middle income?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.9% in 2024.
- How does Low & middle income rank for people practicing open defecation, rural?
- Low & middle income ranks 15th out of 47 groups with data for 2024.
- Is people practicing open defecation, rural rising or falling in Low & middle income?
- Over the last ten years it is down 57.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Low & middle income 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.
Download this data
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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.