Sanitation facilities usage in Lesotho

Lesotho: Sanitation facilities usage was 345,039 people in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
345,039 people
Change on year
down 6.2%
World rank
52nd
of 232 countries
All-time high
917,800 people
in 2000
All-time low
345,039 people
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

Sanitation facilities usage in Lesotho, 2000–2024

0200.0k400.0k600.0k800.0k1.0M2000201220242000: 917.8k people2001: 887.4k people2002: 855.9k people2003: 823.3k people2004: 789.5k people2005: 754.6k people2006: 724.2k people2007: 700.8k people2008: 679.0k people2009: 657.5k people2010: 636.1k people2011: 615.2k people2012: 595.6k people2013: 576.2k people2014: 556.8k people2015: 537.3k people2016: 517.6k people2017: 497.7k people2018: 477.3k people2019: 456.3k people2020: 435.0k people2021: 413.1k people2022: 390.7k people2023: 368.0k people2024: 345.0k people

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

Analysis

Lesotho recorded 345,039 people for sanitation facilities usage in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

That represents a change of down 6.2% on the previous year and down 38.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, sanitation facilities usage in Lesotho peaked at 917,800 people in 2000 and was at its lowest, 345,039 people, in 2024.

That places Lesotho 52nd out of 232 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 778,997 people 657,486 people 917,800 people 10
2010s 546,636 people 456,328 people 636,086 people 10
2020s 390,367 people 345,039 people 434,990 people 5

Countries ranked near Lesotho

  1. 49 Malawi 420,944 people compare
  2. 50 Solomon Islands 371,400 people compare
  3. 51 Honduras 369,234 people compare
  4. 53 Iran 335,653 people compare
  5. 54 Ecuador 310,092 people compare
  6. 55 Burundi 277,303 people compare

See the full ranking of 232 places →

More reference data data for Lesotho

All data for Lesotho →

Frequently asked questions

What is sanitation facilities usage in Lesotho?
Sanitation facilities usage in Lesotho was 345,039 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 recorded in Lesotho?
The highest recorded value was 917,800 people in 2000.
What is the lowest sanitation facilities usage recorded in Lesotho?
The lowest recorded value was 345,039 people in 2024.
How does Lesotho rank for sanitation facilities usage?
Lesotho ranks 52nd out of 232 countries with data for 2024.
Is sanitation facilities usage rising or falling in Lesotho?
Over the last ten years it is down 38.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Lesotho 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. 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
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
232 places, 5,488 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.