Sanitation facilities usage in rural areas in Laos

Laos: Sanitation facilities usage in rural areas was 678,318 people in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
678,318 people
Change on year
down 14.5%
World rank
42nd
of 175 countries
All-time high
3.09 million people
in 2000
All-time low
678,318 people
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

Sanitation facilities usage in rural areas in Laos, 2000–2024

500.0k1.0M1.5M2.0M2.5M3.0M2000201220242000: 3.1M people2001: 3.0M people2002: 2.9M people2003: 2.8M people2004: 2.7M people2005: 2.6M people2006: 2.5M people2007: 2.4M people2008: 2.3M people2009: 2.2M people2010: 2.1M people2011: 2.1M people2012: 2.0M people2013: 1.9M people2014: 1.8M people2015: 1.6M people2016: 1.5M people2017: 1.4M people2018: 1.3M people2019: 1.2M people2020: 1.1M people2021: 1.0M people2022: 905.5k people2023: 793.1k people2024: 678.3k 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 sanitation facilities usage in rural areas in Laos is 678,318 people, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

The figure is down 14.5% on the previous year and down 61.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, sanitation facilities usage in rural areas in Laos peaked at 3.09 million people in 2000 and was at its lowest, 678,318 people, in 2024.

Laos ranks 42nd of 175 countries on this measure, 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 2.66 million people 2.24 million people 3.09 million people 10
2010s 1.70 million people 1.23 million people 2.15 million people 10
2020s 904,036 people 678,318 people 1.13 million people 5

Countries ranked near Laos

  1. 39 Mali 792,478 people compare
  2. 40 Mauritania 780,262 people compare
  3. 41 Namibia 716,848 people compare
  4. 43 Guinea 648,978 people compare
  5. 44 Peru 516,637 people compare
  6. 45 Congo 430,056 people compare

See the full ranking of 175 places →

More reference data data for Laos

All data for Laos →

Frequently asked questions

What is sanitation facilities usage in rural areas in Laos?
Sanitation facilities usage in rural areas in Laos was 678,318 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 sanitation facilities usage in rural areas recorded in Laos?
The highest recorded value was 3.09 million people in 2000.
What is the lowest sanitation facilities usage in rural areas recorded in Laos?
The lowest recorded value was 678,318 people in 2024.
How does Laos rank for sanitation facilities usage in rural areas?
Laos ranks 42nd out of 175 countries with data for 2024.
Is sanitation facilities usage in rural areas rising or falling in Laos?
Over the last ten years it is down 61.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Laos 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 Sanitation facilities usage in rural areas. 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
Sanitation facilities usage in rural areas
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, 4,232 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Open defecation includes defecating in fields, forests, bushes, bodies of water or other open spaces, not using any sanitation facilities.