Using safely managed sanitation facilities: urban vs. rural population in Lesotho

Lesotho: Using safely managed sanitation facilities: urban vs. rural population was 34.7% in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
34.7%
Change on year
up 0.8%
World rank
88th
of 124 countries
All-time high
34.7%
in 2024
All-time low
21.2%
in 2000
Years of data
25
2000–2024

Using safely managed sanitation facilities: urban vs. rural population in Lesotho, 2000–2024

01020302000201220242000: 21.2 %2001: 21.9 %2002: 22.5 %2003: 23.2 %2004: 23.9 %2005: 24.5 %2006: 25.2 %2007: 25.8 %2008: 26.5 %2009: 27.1 %2010: 27.8 %2011: 28.4 %2012: 29.1 %2013: 29.7 %2014: 30.4 %2015: 31.1 %2016: 31.7 %2017: 32.5 %2018: 32.8 %2019: 33.1 %2020: 33.5 %2021: 33.8 %2022: 34.1 %2023: 34.4 %2024: 34.7 %

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

Analysis

In 2024, using safely managed sanitation facilities: urban vs. rural population in Lesotho stood at 34.7%. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.

That represents a change of up 0.8% on the previous year and up 14.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, using safely managed sanitation facilities: urban vs. rural population in Lesotho peaked at 34.7% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 21.2%, in 2000.

Lesotho ranks 88th of 124 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 24.2% 21.2% 27.1% 10
2010s 30.7% 27.8% 33.1% 10
2020s 34.1% 33.5% 34.7% 5

Countries ranked near Lesotho

  1. 85 Tuvalu 37.4% compare
  2. 86 Nigeria 36.8% compare
  3. 87 Sao Tome and Principe 35.5% compare
  4. 89 Guyana 34.1% compare
  5. 90 Turks and Caicos Islands 33.3% compare
  6. 91 Nauru 33.2% compare

See the full ranking of 124 places →

More population data for Lesotho

All data for Lesotho →

Frequently asked questions

What is using safely managed sanitation facilities: urban vs. rural population in Lesotho?
Using safely managed sanitation facilities: urban vs. rural population in Lesotho was 34.7% 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 using safely managed sanitation facilities: urban vs. rural population recorded in Lesotho?
The highest recorded value was 34.7% in 2024.
What is the lowest using safely managed sanitation facilities: urban vs. rural population recorded in Lesotho?
The lowest recorded value was 21.2% in 2000.
How does Lesotho rank for using safely managed sanitation facilities: urban vs. rural population?
Lesotho ranks 88th out of 124 countries with data for 2024.
Is using safely managed sanitation facilities: urban vs. rural population rising or falling in Lesotho?
Over the last ten years it is up 14.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
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 Using safely managed sanitation facilities: urban vs. rural population. 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
Using safely managed sanitation facilities: urban vs. rural population
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
124 places, 3,067 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Proportion of people using improved sanitation facilities that are not shared with other households and where excreta are safely disposed in situ or transported and treated off-site.