People without basic handwashing facilities in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: People without basic handwashing facilities was 2.84 million people in 2024. ▲ Rising
People without basic handwashing facilities in Sri Lanka, 2013–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
Sri Lanka recorded 2.84 million people for people without basic handwashing facilities in 2024. That is the highest value across all 12 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.5% on the previous year and up 6.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, people without basic handwashing facilities in Sri Lanka peaked at 2.84 million people in 2024 and was at its lowest, 2.65 million people, in 2013.
That places Sri Lanka 57th out of 120 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 12 years of available data.
People without basic handwashing facilities in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 2.65 million people | — |
| 2014 | 2.67 million people | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 2.69 million people | +0.8% |
| 2016 | 2.71 million people | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 2.73 million people | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 2.75 million people | +0.7% |
| 2019 | 2.77 million people | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 2.79 million people | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 2.80 million people | +0.5% |
| 2022 | 2.82 million people | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 2.83 million people | +0.5% |
| 2024 | 2.84 million people | +0.5% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 2.84 million people is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 472,598 people, 6.0× the median. (43 countries reporting)
- Sri Lanka's 2.84 million people is below the median for South Asia, which is 6.13 million people, 46% of the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 2.71 million people | 2.65 million people | 2.77 million people | 7 |
| 2020s | 2.82 million people | 2.79 million people | 2.84 million people | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
- 54 Philippines 3.13 million people compare
- 55 Mauritania 3.07 million people compare
- 56 Congo 2.91 million people compare
- 58 Laos 2.83 million people compare
- 59 Tajikistan 2.80 million people compare
- 60 Gambia 2.40 million people compare
More reference data data for Sri Lanka
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1608 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.316 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.33 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.1784 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 2.33 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.539 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.1604 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 10.15 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.9713 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is people without basic handwashing facilities in Sri Lanka?
- People without basic handwashing facilities in Sri Lanka was 2.84 million people in 2024, according to WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest people without basic handwashing facilities recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 2.84 million people in 2024.
- What is the lowest people without basic handwashing facilities recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.65 million people in 2013.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for people without basic handwashing facilities?
- Sri Lanka ranks 57th out of 120 countries with data for 2024.
- Is people without basic handwashing facilities rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of People without basic handwashing facilities. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
People without access to a handwashing facility with soap and water available at home.