Drinking water services in Namibia
Namibia: Drinking water services was 87,594 people in 2024. ▼ Falling
Drinking water services in Namibia, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
The most recent figure for drinking water services in Namibia is 87,594 people, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is down 2.1% on the previous year and down 14.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, drinking water services in Namibia peaked at 131,694 people in 2000 and was at its lowest, 87,594 people, in 2024.
That places Namibia 66th out of 231 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Drinking water services in Namibia, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 131,694 people | — |
| 2001 | 131,080 people | -0.5% |
| 2002 | 129,337 people | -1.3% |
| 2003 | 127,021 people | -1.8% |
| 2004 | 124,452 people | -2.0% |
| 2005 | 121,833 people | -2.1% |
| 2006 | 119,219 people | -2.1% |
| 2007 | 116,646 people | -2.2% |
| 2008 | 114,126 people | -2.2% |
| 2009 | 111,672 people | -2.2% |
| 2010 | 109,275 people | -2.1% |
| 2011 | 107,038 people | -2.0% |
| 2012 | 105,262 people | -1.7% |
| 2013 | 103,830 people | -1.4% |
| 2014 | 102,353 people | -1.4% |
| 2015 | 100,868 people | -1.5% |
| 2016 | 99,407 people | -1.4% |
| 2017 | 97,972 people | -1.4% |
| 2018 | 96,561 people | -1.4% |
| 2019 | 95,164 people | -1.4% |
| 2020 | 93,865 people | -1.4% |
| 2021 | 92,597 people | -1.4% |
| 2022 | 91,163 people | -1.5% |
| 2023 | 89,492 people | -1.8% |
| 2024 | 87,594 people | -2.1% |
Namibia compared with similar countries
- Namibia's 87,594 people is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 261,824 people, 33% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Namibia's 87,594 people is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 511,332 people, 17% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 122,708 people | 111,672 people | 131,694 people | 10 |
| 2010s | 101,773 people | 95,164 people | 109,275 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 90,942 people | 87,594 people | 93,865 people | 5 |
Countries ranked near Namibia
- 63 Eswatini 109,905 people compare
- 64 Kyrgyzstan 107,143 people compare
- 65 Equatorial Guinea 99,032 people compare
- 67 Lesotho 85,696 people compare
- 68 Mali 76,905 people compare
- 69 Dominican Republic 75,980 people compare
More environment data for Namibia
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -2.99 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -1.14 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.319 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 0.979 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.32 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 4.07 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is drinking water services in Namibia?
- Drinking water services in Namibia was 87,594 people 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 drinking water services recorded in Namibia?
- The highest recorded value was 131,694 people in 2000.
- What is the lowest drinking water services recorded in Namibia?
- The lowest recorded value was 87,594 people in 2024.
- How does Namibia rank for drinking water services?
- Namibia ranks 66th out of 231 countries with data for 2024.
- Is drinking water services rising or falling in Namibia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 14.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Namibia 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 Drinking water services. 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
Number of people using drinking water directly collected from surface waters.