Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Mongolia
Mongolia: Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas was 13.7% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Mongolia, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Mongolia recorded 13.7% for open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of down 8.5% on the previous year and down 48.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Mongolia peaked at 44.2% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 13.7%, in 2024.
That places Mongolia 38th out of 175 countries with data for 2024, putting it 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 Mongolia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 44.2% | — |
| 2001 | 42.9% | -2.9% |
| 2002 | 41.6% | -3.0% |
| 2003 | 40.4% | -3.1% |
| 2004 | 39.1% | -3.1% |
| 2005 | 37.8% | -3.2% |
| 2006 | 36.6% | -3.4% |
| 2007 | 35.3% | -3.5% |
| 2008 | 34.0% | -3.6% |
| 2009 | 32.8% | -3.7% |
| 2010 | 31.5% | -3.9% |
| 2011 | 30.2% | -4.0% |
| 2012 | 28.9% | -4.2% |
| 2013 | 27.7% | -4.4% |
| 2014 | 26.4% | -4.6% |
| 2015 | 25.1% | -4.8% |
| 2016 | 23.9% | -5.1% |
| 2017 | 22.6% | -5.3% |
| 2018 | 21.3% | -5.6% |
| 2019 | 20.0% | -6.0% |
| 2020 | 18.8% | -6.3% |
| 2021 | 17.5% | -6.8% |
| 2022 | 16.2% | -7.3% |
| 2023 | 15.0% | -7.8% |
| 2024 | 13.7% | -8.5% |
Mongolia compared with similar countries
- Mongolia's 13.7% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.3%, 51.2× the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Mongolia's 13.7% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.2%, 4.2× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 38.5% | 32.8% | 44.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 25.8% | 20.0% | 31.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.2% | 13.7% | 18.8% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Mongolia
- 35 Afghanistan 15.4% compare
- 36 Laos 14.3% compare
- 37 Guinea-Bissau 14.2% compare
- 39 Pakistan 13.0% compare
- 40 East Timor 11.7% compare
- 41 Senegal 11.3% compare
More reference data data for Mongolia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.8173 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 3.37 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 4.25 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0069 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 4.25 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 2.74 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 3.16 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 12.74 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 18.89 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0378 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Mongolia?
- Open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas in Mongolia was 13.7% 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 Mongolia?
- The highest recorded value was 44.2% in 2000.
- What is the lowest open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas recorded in Mongolia?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.7% in 2024.
- How does Mongolia rank for open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas?
- Mongolia ranks 38th out of 175 countries with data for 2024.
- Is open defecation in rural areas vs. urban areas rising or falling in Mongolia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 48.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Mongolia 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.