Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Zambia

Zambia: Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas was 28.7% in 2024. ▬ Flat

Latest (2024)
28.7%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
96th
of 113 countries
All-time high
28.7%
in 2008
All-time low
28.7%
in 2008
Years of data
17
2008–2024

Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Zambia, 2008–2024

01020302008201620242008: 28.7 %2009: 28.7 %2010: 28.7 %2011: 28.7 %2012: 28.7 %2013: 28.7 %2014: 28.7 %2015: 28.7 %2016: 28.7 %2017: 28.7 %2018: 28.7 %2019: 28.7 %2020: 28.7 %2021: 28.7 %2022: 28.7 %2023: 28.7 %2024: 28.7 %

Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

Zambia recorded 28.7% for access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in 2024. That is the highest value across all 17 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Zambia peaked at 28.7% in 2008 and was at its lowest, 28.7%, in 2008.

That places Zambia 96th out of 113 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 28.7% 28.7% 28.7% 2
2010s 28.7% 28.7% 28.7% 10
2020s 28.7% 28.7% 28.7% 5

Countries ranked near Zambia

  1. 93 Niger 29.8% compare
  2. 94 Rwanda 29.4% compare
  3. 95 Bolivia 29.1% compare
  4. 97 Malawi 27.9% compare
  5. 98 Lesotho 27.8% compare
  6. 99 Haiti 27.6% compare

See the full ranking of 113 places →

More reference data data for Zambia

All data for Zambia →

Frequently asked questions

What is access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Zambia?
Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas in Zambia was 28.7% 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 access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Zambia?
The highest recorded value was 28.7% in 2008.
What is the lowest access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Zambia?
The lowest recorded value was 28.7% in 2008.
How does Zambia rank for access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas?
Zambia ranks 96th out of 113 countries with data for 2024.
Is access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas rising or falling in Zambia?
Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this Zambia 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 — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Access to basic handwashing facilities in urban vs. rural areas
Unit
%
Source
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
113 places, 1,688 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Proportion of people with access to a handwashing facility with soap and water available at home.