Share of children with diarrhea receiving oral rehydration salts in Zambia

Zambia: Share of children with diarrhea receiving oral rehydration salts was 66.8% in 2019. ▲ Rising

Latest (2019)
66.8%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
9th
of 96 countries
All-time high
87.0%
in 1989
All-time low
51.0%
in 1986
Years of data
11
1986–2019

Share of children with diarrhea receiving oral rehydration salts in Zambia, 1986–2019

0204060801986200220191986: 51 % of children under 5 who received ORS packet1987: 59 % of children under 5 who received ORS packet1989: 87 % of children under 5 who received ORS packet1992: 52.9 % of children under 5 who received ORS packet1996: 53.9 % of children under 5 who received ORS packet1997: 53.9 % of children under 5 who received ORS packet2002: 53.2 % of children under 5 who received ORS packet2007: 59.9 % of children under 5 who received ORS packet2014: 64.1 % of children under 5 who received ORS packet2018: 66.8 % of children under 5 who received ORS packet2019: 66.8 % of children under 5 who received ORS packet

Source: Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and UNICEF, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of children under 5 who received ORS packet.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of children with diarrhea receiving oral rehydration salts in Zambia is 66.8%, measured in 2019.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 11.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of children with diarrhea receiving oral rehydration salts in Zambia peaked at 87.0% in 1989 and was at its lowest, 51.0%, in 1986.

That places Zambia 9th out of 96 countries with data for 2019, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 11 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 65.7% 51.0% 87.0% 3
1990s 53.6% 52.9% 53.9% 3
2000s 56.5% 53.2% 59.9% 2
2010s 65.9% 64.1% 66.8% 3

Countries ranked near Zambia

  1. 6 Thailand 72.5% compare
  2. 7 Bangladesh 72.4% compare
  3. 8 El Salvador 69.8% compare
  4. 10 Jamaica 64.1% compare
  5. 11 Myanmar 61.9% compare
  6. 12 Tajikistan 61.7% compare

See the full ranking of 96 places →

More reference data data for Zambia

All data for Zambia →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of children with diarrhea receiving oral rehydration salts in Zambia?
Share of children with diarrhea receiving oral rehydration salts in Zambia was 66.8% in 2019, according to Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and UNICEF, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of children with diarrhea receiving oral rehydration salts recorded in Zambia?
The highest recorded value was 87.0% in 1989.
What is the lowest share of children with diarrhea receiving oral rehydration salts recorded in Zambia?
The lowest recorded value was 51.0% in 1986.
How does Zambia rank for share of children with diarrhea receiving oral rehydration salts?
Zambia ranks 9th out of 96 countries with data for 2019.
Is share of children with diarrhea receiving oral rehydration salts rising or falling in Zambia?
Over the last ten years it is up 11.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Zambia data come from?
The figures come from Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and UNICEF, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children with diarrhea receiving oral rehydration salts. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 11 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Share of children with diarrhea receiving oral rehydration salts
Unit
% of children under 5 who received ORS packet
Source
Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and UNICEF, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
96 places, 780 data points, 1985–2021
Last refreshed

The share of children under five years old with diarrhea, in the two weeks prior to the survey, who received oral rehydration salts.