Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana
Ghana: Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas was 55.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana, 2011–2024
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 access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana is 55.0%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 14 years on record.
That represents a change of up 2.5% on the previous year and up 27.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana peaked at 55.0% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 43.1%, in 2011.
That places Ghana 74th out of 113 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 14 years of available data.
Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 43.1% | — |
| 2012 | 43.1% | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 43.1% | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 43.1% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 43.1% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 44.4% | +3.1% |
| 2017 | 45.7% | +3.0% |
| 2018 | 47.0% | +2.9% |
| 2019 | 48.4% | +2.8% |
| 2020 | 49.7% | +2.7% |
| 2021 | 51.0% | +2.7% |
| 2022 | 52.3% | +2.6% |
| 2023 | 53.7% | +2.5% |
| 2024 | 55.0% | +2.5% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 55.0% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 62.4%, 88% of the median. (43 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 55.0% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 33.3%, 1.7× the median. (43 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 44.5% | 43.1% | 48.4% | 9 |
| 2020s | 52.3% | 49.7% | 55.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
- 71 Mauritania 57.6% compare
- 72 Congo 56.1% compare
- 73 Zimbabwe 55.7% compare
- 75 South Africa 52.6% compare
- 76 Dominican Republic 51.2% compare
- 77 Gabon 49.7% compare
More reference data data for Ghana
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.2805 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.89 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.69 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.1989 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 2.69 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.9405 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.9478 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 8.22 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 12.64 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.08 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana?
- Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana was 55.0% 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 access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 55.0% in 2024.
- What is the lowest access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 43.1% in 2011.
- How does Ghana rank for access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas?
- Ghana ranks 74th out of 113 countries with data for 2024.
- Is access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is up 27.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ghana 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 Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 14 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Proportion of people with access to a handwashing facility with soap and water available at home.