Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Marshall Islands
Marshall Islands: Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas was 18.7% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Marshall Islands, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Marshall Islands is 18.7%, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of down 30.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Marshall Islands peaked at 36.0% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 18.7%, in 2023.
Marshall Islands ranks 32nd of 175 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Marshall Islands, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 36.0% | — |
| 2001 | 36.0% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 36.0% | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 36.0% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 36.0% | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 35.1% | -2.5% |
| 2006 | 34.2% | -2.6% |
| 2007 | 33.3% | -2.7% |
| 2008 | 32.4% | -2.7% |
| 2009 | 31.5% | -2.8% |
| 2010 | 30.6% | -2.9% |
| 2011 | 29.7% | -3.0% |
| 2012 | 28.7% | -3.1% |
| 2013 | 27.8% | -3.2% |
| 2014 | 26.9% | -3.3% |
| 2015 | 26.0% | -3.4% |
| 2016 | 25.1% | -3.5% |
| 2017 | 24.2% | -3.6% |
| 2018 | 23.3% | -3.8% |
| 2019 | 22.3% | -3.9% |
| 2020 | 21.4% | -4.1% |
| 2021 | 20.5% | -4.3% |
| 2022 | 19.6% | -4.5% |
| 2023 | 18.7% | -4.7% |
| 2024 | 18.7% | +0.0% |
Marshall Islands compared with similar countries
- Marshall Islands's 18.7% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.3%, 69.9× the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Marshall Islands's 18.7% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.2%, 5.7× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 34.7% | 31.5% | 36.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 26.5% | 22.3% | 30.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 19.8% | 18.7% | 21.4% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Marshall Islands
- 29 Lesotho 19.7% compare
- 30 Democratic Republic of Congo 18.8% compare
- 31 Zimbabwe 18.8% compare
- 33 Papua New Guinea 17.3% compare
- 34 Botswana 16.7% compare
- 35 Afghanistan 15.4% compare
More reference data data for Marshall Islands
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - IPCC Agriculture 0 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - IPCC Agriculture 0 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CH4) - IPCC Agriculture 0 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - IPCC Agriculture 0 (2019)
- Political opposition, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Elected parliament and government, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Global number of reported disasters by size, gaps filled 0 events (2024)
- Civil liberties rating 1 (2025)
- Free country 2 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Marshall Islands?
- Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Marshall Islands was 18.7% 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 Marshall Islands?
- The highest recorded value was 36.0% in 2000.
- What is the lowest open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas recorded in Marshall Islands?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.7% in 2023.
- How does Marshall Islands rank for open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas?
- Marshall Islands ranks 32nd out of 175 countries with data for 2024.
- Is open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas rising or falling in Marshall Islands?
- Over the last ten years it is down 30.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Marshall Islands 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.