Share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities in Malawi

Malawi: Share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities was 12.5% in 2024. ▬ Flat

Latest (2024)
12.5%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
99th
of 113 countries
All-time high
12.5%
in 2022
All-time low
12.5%
in 2000
Years of data
25
2000–2024

Share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities in Malawi, 2000–2024

0510152000201220242000: 12.5 %2001: 12.5 %2002: 12.5 %2003: 12.5 %2004: 12.5 %2005: 12.5 %2006: 12.5 %2007: 12.5 %2008: 12.5 %2009: 12.5 %2010: 12.5 %2011: 12.5 %2012: 12.5 %2013: 12.5 %2014: 12.5 %2015: 12.5 %2016: 12.5 %2017: 12.5 %2018: 12.5 %2019: 12.5 %2020: 12.5 %2021: 12.5 %2022: 12.5 %2023: 12.5 %2024: 12.5 %

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

Analysis

In 2024, share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities in Malawi stood at 12.5%. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities in Malawi peaked at 12.5% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 12.5%, in 2000.

Malawi ranks 99th of 113 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 12.5% 12.5% 12.5% 10
2010s 12.5% 12.5% 12.5% 10
2020s 12.5% 12.5% 12.5% 5

Countries ranked near Malawi

  1. 96 Madagascar 15.1% compare
  2. 97 Tanzania 14.8% compare
  3. 98 Guinea 13.1% compare
  4. 100 Democratic Republic of Congo 12.3% compare
  5. 101 Central African Republic 12.1% compare
  6. 102 Gambia 11.9% compare

See the full ranking of 113 places →

More reference data data for Malawi

All data for Malawi →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities in Malawi?
Share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities in Malawi was 12.5% 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 share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities recorded in Malawi?
The highest recorded value was 12.5% in 2022.
What is the lowest share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities recorded in Malawi?
The lowest recorded value was 12.5% in 2000.
How does Malawi rank for share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities?
Malawi ranks 99th out of 113 countries with data for 2024.
Is share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities rising or falling in Malawi?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this Malawi 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 Share of rural population with access to basic handwashing 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
Share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities
Unit
%
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
113 places, 1,715 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Proportion of people with access to a handwashing facility with soap and water available at home.