People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Tanzania

Tanzania: People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities was 28.10 million people in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
28.10 million people
Change on year
down 0.4%
World rank
6th
of 175 countries
All-time high
28.39 million people
in 2018
All-time low
26.55 million people
in 2000
Years of data
25
2000–2024

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

010.0M20.0M30.0M2000201220242000: 26.6M people2001: 26.8M people2002: 27.0M people2003: 27.1M people2004: 27.2M people2005: 27.3M people2006: 27.4M people2007: 27.5M people2008: 27.6M people2009: 27.6M people2010: 27.6M people2011: 27.7M people2012: 27.7M people2013: 27.8M people2014: 27.9M people2015: 28.0M people2016: 28.2M people2017: 28.3M people2018: 28.4M people2019: 28.4M people2020: 28.4M people2021: 28.3M people2022: 28.3M people2023: 28.2M people2024: 28.1M 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 Tanzania is 28.10 million people, measured in 2024.

That represents a change of down 0.4% on the previous year and up 0.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Tanzania peaked at 28.39 million people in 2018 and was at its lowest, 26.55 million people, in 2000.

Tanzania ranks 6th of 175 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 27.21 million people 26.55 million people 27.61 million people 10
2010s 28.00 million people 27.60 million people 28.39 million people 10
2020s 28.26 million people 28.10 million people 28.37 million people 5

Countries ranked near Tanzania

  1. 3 Nigeria 61.74 million people compare
  2. 4 Democratic Republic of Congo 45.12 million people compare
  3. 5 Pakistan 41.11 million people compare
  4. 7 Uganda 24.65 million people compare
  5. 8 Niger 19.16 million people compare
  6. 9 Kenya 16.01 million people compare

See the full ranking of 175 places →

More reference data data for Tanzania

All data for Tanzania →

Frequently asked questions

What is people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Tanzania?
People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in Tanzania was 28.10 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 Tanzania?
The highest recorded value was 28.39 million people in 2018.
What is the lowest people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities recorded in Tanzania?
The lowest recorded value was 26.55 million people in 2000.
How does Tanzania rank for people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities?
Tanzania ranks 6th out of 175 countries with data for 2024.
Is people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities rising or falling in Tanzania?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Tanzania 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.