Sanitation facilities usage in urban areas in Ethiopia

Ethiopia: Sanitation facilities usage in urban areas was 831,641 people in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
831,641 people
Change on year
down 18.4%
World rank
8th
of 186 countries
All-time high
2.10 million people
in 2004
All-time low
831,641 people
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

Sanitation facilities usage in urban areas in Ethiopia, 2000–2024

0500.0k1.0M1.5M2.0M2000201220242000: 2.1M people2001: 2.1M people2002: 2.1M people2003: 2.1M people2004: 2.1M people2005: 2.1M people2006: 2.1M people2007: 2.1M people2008: 2.1M people2009: 2.1M people2010: 2.1M people2011: 2.1M people2012: 2.0M people2013: 2.0M people2014: 2.0M people2015: 1.9M people2016: 1.8M people2017: 1.8M people2018: 1.7M people2019: 1.6M people2020: 1.5M people2021: 1.3M people2022: 1.2M people2023: 1.0M people2024: 831.6k people

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

Analysis

In 2024, sanitation facilities usage in urban areas in Ethiopia stood at 831,641 people. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

That represents a change of down 18.4% on the previous year and down 57.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, sanitation facilities usage in urban areas in Ethiopia peaked at 2.10 million people in 2004 and was at its lowest, 831,641 people, in 2024.

That places Ethiopia 8th out of 186 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 2.09 million people 2.07 million people 2.10 million people 10
2010s 1.90 million people 1.58 million people 2.08 million people 10
2020s 1.17 million people 831,641 people 1.47 million people 5

Countries ranked near Ethiopia

  1. 5 Ghana 1.88 million people compare
  2. 6 Madagascar 1.77 million people compare
  3. 7 Angola 1.71 million people compare
  4. 9 Chad 769,419 people compare
  5. 10 Cote d'Ivoire 742,443 people compare
  6. 11 Mozambique 610,506 people compare

See the full ranking of 186 places →

More reference data data for Ethiopia

All data for Ethiopia →

Frequently asked questions

What is sanitation facilities usage in urban areas in Ethiopia?
Sanitation facilities usage in urban areas in Ethiopia was 831,641 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 urban areas recorded in Ethiopia?
The highest recorded value was 2.10 million people in 2004.
What is the lowest sanitation facilities usage in urban areas recorded in Ethiopia?
The lowest recorded value was 831,641 people in 2024.
How does Ethiopia rank for sanitation facilities usage in urban areas?
Ethiopia ranks 8th out of 186 countries with data for 2024.
Is sanitation facilities usage in urban areas rising or falling in Ethiopia?
Over the last ten years it is down 57.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Ethiopia 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 urban 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 urban 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
186 places, 4,553 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.