Share of urban vs. rural population using at least basic sanitation in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe: Share of urban vs. rural population using at least basic sanitation was 40.4% in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
40.4%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
170th
of 186 countries
All-time high
63.5%
in 2004
All-time low
40.4%
in 2021
Years of data
25
2000–2024

Share of urban vs. rural population using at least basic sanitation in Zimbabwe, 2000–2024

02040602000201220242000: 63.1 %2001: 63.1 %2002: 63.3 %2003: 63.4 %2004: 63.5 %2005: 62.2 %2006: 60.9 %2007: 59.5 %2008: 58.2 %2009: 56.9 %2010: 55.5 %2011: 54.2 %2012: 52.8 %2013: 51.5 %2014: 50.1 %2015: 48.7 %2016: 47.4 %2017: 46 %2018: 44.6 %2019: 43.2 %2020: 41.8 %2021: 40.4 %2022: 40.4 %2023: 40.4 %2024: 40.4 %

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of urban vs. rural population using at least basic sanitation in Zimbabwe is 40.4%, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

That represents a change of down 19.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of urban vs. rural population using at least basic sanitation in Zimbabwe peaked at 63.5% in 2004 and was at its lowest, 40.4%, in 2021.

That places Zimbabwe 170th out of 186 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 61.4% 56.9% 63.5% 10
2010s 49.4% 43.2% 55.5% 10
2020s 40.7% 40.4% 41.8% 5

Countries ranked near Zimbabwe

  1. 167 Zambia 43.3% compare
  2. 168 Guinea-Bissau 42.8% compare
  3. 169 Burundi 42.0% compare
  4. 171 Kenya 39.7% compare
  5. 172 Chad 39.5% compare
  6. 173 Togo 38.4% compare

See the full ranking of 186 places →

More population data for Zimbabwe

All data for Zimbabwe →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of urban vs. rural population using at least basic sanitation in Zimbabwe?
Share of urban vs. rural population using at least basic sanitation in Zimbabwe was 40.4% 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 urban vs. rural population using at least basic sanitation recorded in Zimbabwe?
The highest recorded value was 63.5% in 2004.
What is the lowest share of urban vs. rural population using at least basic sanitation recorded in Zimbabwe?
The lowest recorded value was 40.4% in 2021.
How does Zimbabwe rank for share of urban vs. rural population using at least basic sanitation?
Zimbabwe ranks 170th out of 186 countries with data for 2024.
Is share of urban vs. rural population using at least basic sanitation rising or falling in Zimbabwe?
Over the last ten years it is down 19.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Zimbabwe 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 urban vs. rural population using at least basic sanitation. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

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About this data

Indicator
Share of urban vs. rural population using at least basic sanitation
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
186 places, 4,556 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Proportion of people using improved sanitation facilities, such as toilets or latrines, that are not shared with other households.