Share of people practicing open defecation in Niger

Niger: Share of people practicing open defecation was 66.0% in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
66.0%
Change on year
down 1.1%
World rank
2nd
of 232 countries
All-time high
81.1%
in 2000
All-time low
66.0%
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

Share of people practicing open defecation in Niger, 2000–2024

0204060802000201220242000: 81.1 %2001: 80.4 %2002: 79.8 %2003: 79.2 %2004: 78.6 %2005: 78.1 %2006: 77.5 %2007: 76.9 %2008: 76.3 %2009: 75.7 %2010: 75.1 %2011: 74.5 %2012: 73.9 %2013: 73.3 %2014: 72.7 %2015: 72.1 %2016: 71.4 %2017: 70.8 %2018: 70.1 %2019: 69.5 %2020: 68.8 %2021: 68.1 %2022: 67.4 %2023: 66.7 %2024: 66 %

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 people practicing open defecation in Niger stood at 66.0%. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

The figure is down 1.1% on the previous year and down 9.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of people practicing open defecation in Niger peaked at 81.1% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 66.0%, in 2024.

That places Niger 2nd out of 232 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 78.4% 75.7% 81.1% 10
2010s 72.3% 69.5% 75.1% 10
2020s 67.4% 66.0% 68.8% 5

Countries ranked near Niger

  1. 1 Eritrea 67.0% compare
  2. 3 South Sudan 62.8% compare
  3. 4 Chad 62.2% compare
  4. 5 Benin 47.0% compare

See the full ranking of 232 places →

More population data for Niger

All data for Niger →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of people practicing open defecation in Niger?
Share of people practicing open defecation in Niger was 66.0% 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 people practicing open defecation recorded in Niger?
The highest recorded value was 81.1% in 2000.
What is the lowest share of people practicing open defecation recorded in Niger?
The lowest recorded value was 66.0% in 2024.
How does Niger rank for share of people practicing open defecation?
Niger ranks 2nd out of 232 countries with data for 2024.
Is share of people practicing open defecation rising or falling in Niger?
Over the last ten years it is down 9.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Niger 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 people practicing open defecation. 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 people practicing open defecation
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, 5,488 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Share of people who practice open defecation. This includes defecating in fields, forests, bushes, bodies of water or other open spaces, not using any sanitation facilities.