People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Brazil

Brazil: People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities was 8.17 million people in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
8.17 million people
Change on year
down 5.2%
World rank
19th
of 175 countries
All-time high
20.46 million people
in 2000
All-time low
8.17 million people
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Brazil, 2000–2024

05.0M10.0M15.0M20.0M2000201220242000: 20.5M people2001: 19.9M people2002: 19.4M people2003: 18.9M people2004: 18.3M people2005: 17.8M people2006: 17.3M people2007: 16.7M people2008: 16.2M people2009: 15.7M people2010: 15.1M people2011: 14.6M people2012: 14.1M people2013: 13.5M people2014: 13.0M people2015: 12.5M people2016: 12.0M people2017: 11.5M people2018: 11.0M people2019: 10.5M people2020: 10.0M people2021: 9.6M people2022: 9.1M people2023: 8.6M people2024: 8.2M people

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

Analysis

Brazil recorded 8.17 million people for people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

The figure is down 5.2% on the previous year and down 37.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Brazil peaked at 20.46 million people in 2000 and was at its lowest, 8.17 million people, in 2024.

That places Brazil 19th 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.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 18.07 million people 15.67 million people 20.46 million people 10
2010s 12.78 million people 10.52 million people 15.13 million people 10
2020s 9.09 million people 8.17 million people 10.04 million people 5

Countries ranked near Brazil

  1. 16 China 12.25 million people compare
  2. 17 Yemen 11.86 million people compare
  3. 18 Russia 10.47 million people compare
  4. 20 Burkina Faso 8.14 million people compare
  5. 21 South Sudan 8.11 million people compare
  6. 22 Angola 8.01 million people compare

See the full ranking of 175 places →

More reference data data for Brazil

All data for Brazil →

Frequently asked questions

What is people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Brazil?
People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Brazil was 8.17 million people 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 people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities recorded in Brazil?
The highest recorded value was 20.46 million people in 2000.
What is the lowest people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities recorded in Brazil?
The lowest recorded value was 8.17 million people in 2024.
How does Brazil rank for people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities?
Brazil ranks 19th out of 175 countries with data for 2024.
Is people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities rising or falling in Brazil?
Over the last ten years it is down 37.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Brazil 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 People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities. 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

Indicator
People in rural areas not using improved sanitation 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
175 places, 4,269 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

If no improved sanitation facility is available, people might practice open defecation or use unimproved sanitation facilities.