Share of population not using improved sanitation facilities in Yemen

Yemen: Share of population not using improved sanitation facilities was 33.0% in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
33.0%
Change on year
down 2.5%
World rank
34th
of 232 countries
All-time high
53.6%
in 2000
All-time low
33.0%
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

Share of population not using improved sanitation facilities in Yemen, 2000–2024

02040602000201220242000: 53.6 %2001: 53.3 %2002: 53 %2003: 52 %2004: 51.1 %2005: 50.1 %2006: 49.1 %2007: 48.2 %2008: 47.3 %2009: 46.3 %2010: 45.4 %2011: 44.5 %2012: 43.5 %2013: 42.6 %2014: 41.7 %2015: 40.8 %2016: 39.9 %2017: 39 %2018: 38.1 %2019: 37.3 %2020: 36.4 %2021: 35.5 %2022: 34.7 %2023: 33.9 %2024: 33 %

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

Analysis

Yemen recorded 33.0% for share of population not using improved sanitation facilities in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

That represents a change of down 2.5% on the previous year and down 20.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of population not using improved sanitation facilities in Yemen peaked at 53.6% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 33.0%, in 2024.

That places Yemen 34th 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 50.4% 46.3% 53.6% 10
2010s 41.3% 37.3% 45.4% 10
2020s 34.7% 33.0% 36.4% 5

Countries ranked near Yemen

  1. 31 Somalia 36.1% compare
  2. 32 Cameroon 35.4% compare
  3. 33 Zimbabwe 34.3% compare
  4. 35 Lesotho 32.8% compare
  5. 36 Mali 32.4% compare
  6. 37 Mauritania 31.9% compare

See the full ranking of 232 places →

More reference data data for Yemen

All data for Yemen →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of population not using improved sanitation facilities in Yemen?
Share of population not using improved sanitation facilities in Yemen was 33.0% 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 population not using improved sanitation facilities recorded in Yemen?
The highest recorded value was 53.6% in 2000.
What is the lowest share of population not using improved sanitation facilities recorded in Yemen?
The lowest recorded value was 33.0% in 2024.
How does Yemen rank for share of population not using improved sanitation facilities?
Yemen ranks 34th out of 232 countries with data for 2024.
Is share of population not using improved sanitation facilities rising or falling in Yemen?
Over the last ten years it is down 20.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Yemen 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 population not using improved 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
Share of population not using improved sanitation 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
232 places, 5,597 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

If no improved sanitation facility is available, people might practice open defecation or use unimproved sanitation facilities.