Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Botswana
Botswana: Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days was 49.8% in 2020. ▼ Falling
Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Botswana, 2000–2020
Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2020, share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Botswana stood at 49.8%.
That represents a change of down 1.3% on the previous year and down 2.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Botswana peaked at 53.0% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 49.7%, in 2016.
That places Botswana 44th out of 187 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 21 years of available data.
Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Botswana, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 53.0% | — |
| 2001 | 52.8% | -0.4% |
| 2002 | 53.0% | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 52.3% | -1.2% |
| 2004 | 51.9% | -0.8% |
| 2005 | 52.2% | +0.6% |
| 2006 | 52.3% | +0.2% |
| 2007 | 51.9% | -0.9% |
| 2008 | 51.9% | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 50.5% | -2.6% |
| 2010 | 50.9% | +0.8% |
| 2011 | 51.3% | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 50.8% | -1.1% |
| 2013 | 50.1% | -1.4% |
| 2014 | 50.2% | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 50.1% | -0.2% |
| 2016 | 49.7% | -0.8% |
| 2017 | 50.3% | +1.3% |
| 2018 | 50.3% | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 50.4% | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 49.8% | -1.3% |
Botswana compared with similar countries
- Botswana's 49.8% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 40.3%, 1.2× the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Botswana's 49.8% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 47.9%, 1.0× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 52.2% | 50.5% | 53.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 50.4% | 49.7% | 51.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 49.8% | 49.8% | 49.8% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Botswana
More reference data data for Botswana
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0472 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.37 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.42 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0078 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.42 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1582 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.0825 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 6.97 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 7.25 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0424 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Botswana?
- Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Botswana was 49.8% in 2020, according to World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days recorded in Botswana?
- The highest recorded value was 53.0% in 2000.
- What is the lowest share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days recorded in Botswana?
- The lowest recorded value was 49.7% in 2016.
- How does Botswana rank for share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days?
- Botswana ranks 44th out of 187 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days rising or falling in Botswana?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Botswana data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 21 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Heavy episodic drinking (drinkers only) is defined as the proportion of adult drinkers (15+ years) who have had at least 60 grams or more of pure alcohol on at least one occasion in the past 30 days. A consumption of 60 grams of pure alcohol corresponds approximately to 6 standard alcoholic drinks.