People using safely managed sanitation services, urban (% of urban) in Malawi
Malawi: People using safely managed sanitation services, urban (% of urban) was 41.2% in 2024. ▲ Rising
People using safely managed sanitation services, urban in Malawi, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene, World Health Organization (WHO). Measured in % of urban population.
Analysis
Malawi recorded 41.2% for people using safely managed sanitation services, urban in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 32.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, people using safely managed sanitation services, urban in Malawi peaked at 41.2% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 18.2%, in 2004.
Malawi ranks 80th of 124 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
People using safely managed sanitation services, urban (% of urban) in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % of urban population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 18.4% | — |
| 2001 | 18.4% | -0.1% |
| 2002 | 18.3% | -0.3% |
| 2003 | 18.3% | -0.3% |
| 2004 | 18.2% | -0.3% |
| 2005 | 19.5% | +7.2% |
| 2006 | 20.8% | +6.7% |
| 2007 | 22.1% | +6.3% |
| 2008 | 23.4% | +5.9% |
| 2009 | 24.7% | +5.5% |
| 2010 | 26.0% | +5.2% |
| 2011 | 27.3% | +4.9% |
| 2012 | 28.6% | +4.7% |
| 2013 | 29.9% | +4.5% |
| 2014 | 31.1% | +4.3% |
| 2015 | 32.4% | +4.1% |
| 2016 | 33.7% | +3.9% |
| 2017 | 34.9% | +3.7% |
| 2018 | 36.2% | +3.6% |
| 2019 | 37.4% | +3.5% |
| 2020 | 38.7% | +3.3% |
| 2021 | 39.9% | +3.2% |
| 2022 | 41.2% | +3.1% |
| 2023 | 41.2% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 41.2% | +0.0% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 41.2% is above the median for low income countries, which is 24.6%, 1.7× the median. (17 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 41.2% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 29.1%, 1.4× the median. (30 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 20.2% | 18.2% | 24.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 31.8% | 26.0% | 37.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 40.4% | 38.7% | 41.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More health data for Malawi
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -0.8368 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.9312 % change on previous year (2090)
- Un projection of annual infant deaths 6,399 (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 1.61 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0714 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 1.63 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per capita 0.0718 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is people using safely managed sanitation services, urban in Malawi?
- People using safely managed sanitation services, urban in Malawi was 41.2% 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 using safely managed sanitation services, urban recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 41.2% in 2022.
- What is the lowest people using safely managed sanitation services, urban recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.2% in 2004.
- How does Malawi rank for people using safely managed sanitation services, urban?
- Malawi ranks 80th out of 124 countries with data for 2024.
- Is people using safely managed sanitation services, urban rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 32.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malawi 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 using safely managed sanitation services, urban (% of urban 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).
About this data
The percentage of people using improved sanitation facilities that are not shared with other households and where excreta are safely disposed of in situ or transported and treated offsite. Improved sanitation facilities include flush/pour flush to piped sewer systems, septic tanks or pit latrines: ventilated improved pit latrines, composting toilets or pit latrines with slabs.