Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Mauritius
Mauritius: Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas was 0.3% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Mauritius, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Mauritius recorded 0.3% for open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.0% on the previous year and up 41.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Mauritius peaked at 0.3% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 0.1%, in 2000.
That places Mauritius 91st out of 175 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Mauritius, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 0.1% | — |
| 2001 | 0.1% | +10.0% |
| 2002 | 0.1% | +9.1% |
| 2003 | 0.1% | +8.3% |
| 2004 | 0.1% | +7.7% |
| 2005 | 0.1% | +7.2% |
| 2006 | 0.1% | +6.7% |
| 2007 | 0.1% | +6.3% |
| 2008 | 0.1% | +5.9% |
| 2009 | 0.1% | +5.6% |
| 2010 | 0.2% | +5.3% |
| 2011 | 0.2% | +5.0% |
| 2012 | 0.2% | +4.8% |
| 2013 | 0.2% | +4.5% |
| 2014 | 0.2% | +4.4% |
| 2015 | 0.2% | +4.2% |
| 2016 | 0.2% | +4.0% |
| 2017 | 0.2% | +3.8% |
| 2018 | 0.2% | +3.7% |
| 2019 | 0.2% | +3.6% |
| 2020 | 0.2% | +3.4% |
| 2021 | 0.2% | +3.3% |
| 2022 | 0.3% | +3.2% |
| 2023 | 0.3% | +3.1% |
| 2024 | 0.3% | +3.0% |
Mauritius compared with similar countries
- Mauritius's 0.3% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.3%, 100% of the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Mauritius's 0.3% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 19.7%, 1% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.3% | 0.2% | 0.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Mauritius
- 88 Jamaica 0.4% compare
- 89 Croatia 0.4% compare
- 90 North Macedonia 0.3% compare
- 92 Trinidad and Tobago 0.2% compare
- 93 Moldova 0.2% compare
- 94 Turks and Caicos Islands 0.2% compare
More reference data data for Mauritius
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0102 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.0409 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.0513 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0002 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.0513 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0343 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.0167 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.2303 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.2885 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0008 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Mauritius?
- Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Mauritius was 0.3% 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 Mauritius?
- The highest recorded value was 0.3% in 2024.
- What is the lowest open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas recorded in Mauritius?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.1% in 2000.
- How does Mauritius rank for open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas?
- Mauritius ranks 91st out of 175 countries with data for 2024.
- Is open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas rising or falling in Mauritius?
- Over the last ten years it is up 41.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Mauritius 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.