Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas was 21.2% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Sierra Leone, 2004–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Sierra Leone recorded 21.2% for access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in 2024. That is the highest value across all 21 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.3% on the previous year and up 2.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Sierra Leone peaked at 21.2% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 20.2%, in 2004.
That places Sierra Leone 108th out of 113 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 21 years of available data.
Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 20.2% | — |
| 2005 | 20.2% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 20.2% | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 20.2% | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 20.2% | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 20.3% | +0.3% |
| 2010 | 20.4% | +0.3% |
| 2011 | 20.4% | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 20.5% | +0.3% |
| 2013 | 20.5% | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 20.6% | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 20.7% | +0.3% |
| 2016 | 20.7% | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 20.8% | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 20.9% | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 20.9% | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 21.0% | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 21.0% | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 21.1% | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 21.2% | +0.3% |
| 2024 | 21.2% | +0.3% |
Sierra Leone compared with similar countries
- Sierra Leone's 21.2% is below the median for low income countries, which is 28.7%, 74% of the median. (22 countries reporting)
- Sierra Leone's 21.2% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 33.3%, 64% of the median. (43 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 20.3% | 20.2% | 20.3% | 6 |
| 2010s | 20.6% | 20.4% | 20.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 21.1% | 21.0% | 21.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
More reference data data for Sierra Leone
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0238 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.4498 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.5935 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.12 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.5935 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0797 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.044 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.91 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.72 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.6534 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Sierra Leone?
- Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Sierra Leone was 21.2% 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 Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 21.2% in 2024.
- What is the lowest access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was 20.2% in 2004.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas?
- Sierra Leone ranks 108th out of 113 countries with data for 2024.
- Is access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sierra Leone 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 21 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.