Proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises in South Africa

South Africa: Proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises was 44.37 in 2020. β–¬ Flat

Latest (2020)
44.37
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
79th
of 120 countries
All-time high
44.37
in 2020
All-time low
43.35
in 2012
Years of data
9
2012–2020

Proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises in South Africa, 2012–2020

0102030402012201620202012: 43.32013: 43.52014: 43.62015: 43.72016: 43.92017: 442018: 44.12019: 44.22020: 44.4

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

South Africa recorded 44.37 for proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises in 2020. That is the highest value across all 9 years on record.

The figure is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 2.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises in South Africa peaked at 44.37 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 43.35, in 2012.

That places South Africa 79th out of 120 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 43.8 43.35 44.24 8
2020s 44.37 44.37 44.37 1

Countries ranked near South Africa

  1. 76 Gabon 48.17
  2. 77 Ghana 45.48 compare
  3. 78 Namibia 44.6 compare
  4. 80 Zimbabwe 42.51 compare
  5. 81 Mauritania, Islamic Republic of 40.7 compare
  6. 82 Eswatini, Kingdom of 39.32 compare

See the full ranking of 120 places β†’

More population data for South Africa

All data for South Africa β†’

Frequently asked questions

What is proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises in South Africa?
Proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises in South Africa was 44.37 in 2020, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises recorded in South Africa?
The highest recorded value was 44.37 in 2020.
What is the lowest proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises recorded in South Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 43.35 in 2012.
How does South Africa rank for proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises?
South Africa ranks 79th out of 120 countries with data for 2020.
Is proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises rising or falling in South Africa?
Over the last ten years it is up 2.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this South Africa data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV Β· JSON β€” 9 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises in South Africa. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 18 August 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/stat/proportion-of-population-with-basic-handwashing-facilities-on-premises/south-africa/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://population.statizoid.com/stat/proportion-of-population-with-basic-handwashing-facilities-on-premises/south-africa/">Proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises in South Africa</a> β€” Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Proportion of population with basic handwashing facilities on premises
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
120 places, 1,792 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed