People not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Nepal

Nepal: People not using safely managed sanitation facilities was 13.81 million people in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
13.81 million people
Change on year
down 4.7%
World rank
38th
of 150 countries
All-time high
22.75 million people
in 2000
All-time low
13.81 million people
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

People not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Nepal, 2000–2024

05.0M10.0M15.0M20.0M25.0M2000201220242000: 22.8M people2001: 22.6M people2002: 22.6M people2003: 22.5M people2004: 22.3M people2005: 22.1M people2006: 21.9M people2007: 21.6M people2008: 21.3M people2009: 21.0M people2010: 20.6M people2011: 20.2M people2012: 19.7M people2013: 19.2M people2014: 18.7M people2015: 18.3M people2016: 17.8M people2017: 17.3M people2018: 16.7M people2019: 16.3M people2020: 16.0M people2021: 15.7M people2022: 15.2M people2023: 14.5M people2024: 13.8M people

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

Analysis

Nepal recorded 13.81 million people for people not using safely managed sanitation facilities in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 4.7% on the previous year and down 26.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, people not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Nepal peaked at 22.75 million people in 2000 and was at its lowest, 13.81 million people, in 2024.

That places Nepal 38th out of 150 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 22.07 million people 20.96 million people 22.75 million people 10
2010s 18.49 million people 16.34 million people 20.59 million people 10
2020s 15.04 million people 13.81 million people 16.04 million people 5

Countries ranked near Nepal

  1. 35 South Africa 16.78 million people compare
  2. 36 Somalia 15.89 million people compare
  3. 37 Peru 14.89 million people compare
  4. 39 Senegal 12.94 million people compare
  5. 40 Italy 12.93 million people compare
  6. 41 Zimbabwe 12.72 million people compare

See the full ranking of 150 places →

More reference data data for Nepal

All data for Nepal →

Frequently asked questions

What is people not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Nepal?
People not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Nepal was 13.81 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 Nepal?
The highest recorded value was 22.75 million people in 2000.
What is the lowest people not using safely managed sanitation facilities recorded in Nepal?
The lowest recorded value was 13.81 million people in 2024.
How does Nepal rank for people not using safely managed sanitation facilities?
Nepal ranks 38th out of 150 countries with data for 2024.
Is people not using safely managed sanitation facilities rising or falling in Nepal?
Over the last ten years it is down 26.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Nepal 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

Indicator
People not using safely managed 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
150 places, 3,667 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

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.