Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Jamaica
Jamaica: Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas was 0.4% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Jamaica, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Jamaica recorded 0.4% for open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 9.5% on the previous year and down 51.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Jamaica peaked at 1.3% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 0.4%, in 2024.
Jamaica ranks 88th of 175 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Jamaica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 1.3% | — |
| 2001 | 1.2% | -3.0% |
| 2002 | 1.2% | -3.1% |
| 2003 | 1.2% | -3.2% |
| 2004 | 1.1% | -3.3% |
| 2005 | 1.1% | -3.4% |
| 2006 | 1.0% | -3.5% |
| 2007 | 1.0% | -3.6% |
| 2008 | 1.0% | -3.8% |
| 2009 | 0.9% | -3.9% |
| 2010 | 0.9% | -4.1% |
| 2011 | 0.9% | -4.2% |
| 2012 | 0.8% | -4.4% |
| 2013 | 0.8% | -4.6% |
| 2014 | 0.7% | -4.9% |
| 2015 | 0.7% | -5.1% |
| 2016 | 0.7% | -5.4% |
| 2017 | 0.6% | -5.7% |
| 2018 | 0.6% | -6.0% |
| 2019 | 0.6% | -6.4% |
| 2020 | 0.5% | -6.9% |
| 2021 | 0.5% | -7.4% |
| 2022 | 0.4% | -8.0% |
| 2023 | 0.4% | -8.7% |
| 2024 | 0.4% | -9.5% |
Jamaica compared with similar countries
- Jamaica's 0.4% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.3%, 1.4× the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Jamaica's 0.4% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 1.4%, 26% of the median. (27 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 1.1% | 0.9% | 1.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.7% | 0.6% | 0.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Jamaica
More reference data data for Jamaica
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.045 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.1808 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.2582 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0003 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.2582 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1508 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.0583 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.8486 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.19 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0015 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Jamaica?
- Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Jamaica was 0.4% 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 open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas recorded in Jamaica?
- The highest recorded value was 1.3% in 2000.
- What is the lowest open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas recorded in Jamaica?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.4% in 2024.
- How does Jamaica rank for open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas?
- Jamaica ranks 88th out of 175 countries with data for 2024.
- Is open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas rising or falling in Jamaica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 51.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Jamaica 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 Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of people who practice open defecation. This includes defecating in fields, forests, bushes, bodies of water or other open spaces, not using any sanitation facilities.