People not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Democratic Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo: People not using safely managed sanitation facilities was 94.98 million people in 2024. ▲ Rising
People not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Democratic Republic of Congo, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
Democratic Republic of Congo recorded 94.98 million people for people not using safely managed sanitation facilities in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.3% on the previous year and up 43.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, people not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at 94.98 million people in 2024 and was at its lowest, 39.39 million people, in 2000.
That places Democratic Republic of Congo 7th out of 150 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
People not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Democratic Republic of Congo, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 39.39 million people | — |
| 2001 | 40.90 million people | +3.8% |
| 2002 | 42.41 million people | +3.7% |
| 2003 | 43.92 million people | +3.6% |
| 2004 | 45.49 million people | +3.6% |
| 2005 | 47.17 million people | +3.7% |
| 2006 | 48.91 million people | +3.7% |
| 2007 | 50.68 million people | +3.6% |
| 2008 | 52.50 million people | +3.6% |
| 2009 | 54.46 million people | +3.7% |
| 2010 | 56.55 million people | +3.8% |
| 2011 | 58.77 million people | +3.9% |
| 2012 | 61.10 million people | +4.0% |
| 2013 | 63.56 million people | +4.0% |
| 2014 | 66.11 million people | +4.0% |
| 2015 | 68.69 million people | +3.9% |
| 2016 | 71.53 million people | +4.1% |
| 2017 | 74.58 million people | +4.3% |
| 2018 | 77.51 million people | +3.9% |
| 2019 | 80.40 million people | +3.7% |
| 2020 | 83.44 million people | +3.8% |
| 2021 | 86.20 million people | +3.3% |
| 2022 | 89.05 million people | +3.3% |
| 2023 | 91.97 million people | +3.3% |
| 2024 | 94.98 million people | +3.3% |
Democratic Republic of Congo compared with similar countries
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 94.98 million people is above the median for low income countries, which is 19.58 million people, 4.9× the median. (17 countries reporting)
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 94.98 million people is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 16.78 million people, 5.7× the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 46.58 million people | 39.39 million people | 54.46 million people | 10 |
| 2010s | 67.88 million people | 56.55 million people | 80.40 million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 89.13 million people | 83.44 million people | 94.98 million people | 5 |
Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo
More reference data data for Democratic Republic of Congo
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.18 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Manure Management 220.65 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - IPCC Agriculture 3,924 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - IPCC Agriculture 3,062 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 9.9 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Manure left on Pasture 1,764 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Manure applied to Soils 313.43 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Burning - Crop residues 0.2179 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - Manure applied 313.43 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Enteric 3,057 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is people not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- People not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Democratic Republic of Congo was 94.98 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 not using safely managed sanitation facilities recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The highest recorded value was 94.98 million people in 2024.
- What is the lowest people not using safely managed sanitation facilities recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was 39.39 million people in 2000.
- How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for people not using safely managed sanitation facilities?
- Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 7th out of 150 countries with data for 2024.
- Is people not using safely managed sanitation facilities rising or falling in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Over the last ten years it is up 43.7%. 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 People not using safely managed 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
People not using safely managed sanitation services might practice open defecation, use unimproved sanitation facilities, or use improved facilities that do not safely manage human waste.