Rural population without basic handwashing facilities in Democratic Republic of Congo

Democratic Republic of Congo: Rural population without basic handwashing facilities was 47.72 million people in 2022. ▲ Rising

Latest (2022)
47.72 million people
Change on year
up 2.1%
World rank
4th
of 113 countries
All-time high
47.72 million people
in 2022
All-time low
39.74 million people
in 2014
Years of data
9
2014–2022

Rural population without basic handwashing facilities in Democratic Republic of Congo, 2014–2022

010.0M20.0M30.0M40.0M50.0M2014201820222014: 39.7M people2015: 40.7M people2016: 41.7M people2017: 42.8M people2018: 43.8M people2019: 44.8M people2020: 45.7M people2021: 46.7M people2022: 47.7M people

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

Analysis

In 2022, rural population without basic handwashing facilities in Democratic Republic of Congo stood at 47.72 million people. That is the highest value across all 9 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.1% on the previous year and up 20.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, rural population without basic handwashing facilities in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at 47.72 million people in 2022 and was at its lowest, 39.74 million people, in 2014.

That places Democratic Republic of Congo 4th out of 113 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top 10%.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 42.27 million people 39.74 million people 44.78 million people 6
2020s 46.73 million people 45.75 million people 47.72 million people 3

Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo

  1. 1 India 128.97 million people compare
  2. 2 Ethiopia 97.47 million people compare
  3. 3 Nigeria 80.69 million people compare
  4. 5 Tanzania 36.13 million people compare
  5. 6 Bangladesh 34.62 million people compare
  6. 7 Pakistan 30.65 million people compare

See the full ranking of 113 places →

More reference data data for Democratic Republic of Congo

All data for Democratic Republic of Congo →

Frequently asked questions

What is rural population without basic handwashing facilities in Democratic Republic of Congo?
Rural population without basic handwashing facilities in Democratic Republic of Congo was 47.72 million people in 2022, according to WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest rural population without basic handwashing facilities recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
The highest recorded value was 47.72 million people in 2022.
What is the lowest rural population without basic handwashing facilities recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
The lowest recorded value was 39.74 million people in 2014.
How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for rural population without basic handwashing facilities?
Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 4th out of 113 countries with data for 2022.
Is rural population without basic handwashing facilities rising or falling in Democratic Republic of Congo?
Over the last ten years it is up 20.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Democratic Republic of Congo 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 Rural population without basic handwashing facilities. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 9 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Rural population without basic handwashing facilities
Unit
people
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, 1,715 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

People without access to a handwashing facility with soap and water available at home.