People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Cameroon

Cameroon: People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities was 7.72 million people in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
7.72 million people
Change on year
up 1.1%
World rank
25th
of 175 countries
All-time high
7.72 million people
in 2024
All-time low
5.44 million people
in 2000
Years of data
25
2000–2024

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

02.0M4.0M6.0M8.0M2000201220242000: 5.4M people2001: 5.5M people2002: 5.6M people2003: 5.7M people2004: 5.8M people2005: 5.9M people2006: 6.0M people2007: 6.0M people2008: 6.1M people2009: 6.2M people2010: 6.3M people2011: 6.4M people2012: 6.5M people2013: 6.6M people2014: 6.7M people2015: 6.9M people2016: 7.0M people2017: 7.1M people2018: 7.2M people2019: 7.3M people2020: 7.4M people2021: 7.5M people2022: 7.5M people2023: 7.6M people2024: 7.7M people

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Cameroon is 7.72 million people, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.

The figure is up 1.1% on the previous year and up 14.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Cameroon peaked at 7.72 million people in 2024 and was at its lowest, 5.44 million people, in 2000.

Cameroon ranks 25th of 175 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 5.83 million people 5.44 million people 6.25 million people 10
2010s 6.81 million people 6.34 million people 7.28 million people 10
2020s 7.55 million people 7.37 million people 7.72 million people 5

Countries ranked near Cameroon

  1. 22 Angola 8.01 million people compare
  2. 23 Cote d'Ivoire 7.92 million people compare
  3. 24 Indonesia 7.90 million people compare
  4. 26 Papua New Guinea 6.84 million people compare
  5. 27 Myanmar 6.61 million people compare
  6. 28 Zambia 6.57 million people compare

See the full ranking of 175 places →

More reference data data for Cameroon

All data for Cameroon →

Frequently asked questions

What is people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Cameroon?
People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Cameroon was 7.72 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 Cameroon?
The highest recorded value was 7.72 million people in 2024.
What is the lowest people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities recorded in Cameroon?
The lowest recorded value was 5.44 million people in 2000.
How does Cameroon rank for people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities?
Cameroon ranks 25th out of 175 countries with data for 2024.
Is people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities rising or falling in Cameroon?
Over the last ten years it is up 14.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Cameroon 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.