Drinking water services in rural areas in Benin
Benin: Drinking water services in rural areas was 309,081 people in 2024. ▼ Falling
Drinking water services in rural areas in Benin, 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
In 2024, drinking water services in rural areas in Benin stood at 309,081 people. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 7.9% on the previous year and down 41.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, drinking water services in rural areas in Benin peaked at 657,518 people in 2000 and was at its lowest, 309,081 people, in 2024.
That places Benin 50th out of 178 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 rural areas in Benin, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 657,518 people | — |
| 2001 | 654,570 people | -0.4% |
| 2002 | 650,190 people | -0.7% |
| 2003 | 644,025 people | -0.9% |
| 2004 | 637,258 people | -1.1% |
| 2005 | 630,807 people | -1.0% |
| 2006 | 622,988 people | -1.2% |
| 2007 | 613,386 people | -1.5% |
| 2008 | 603,423 people | -1.6% |
| 2009 | 592,574 people | -1.8% |
| 2010 | 580,835 people | -2.0% |
| 2011 | 568,234 people | -2.2% |
| 2012 | 554,729 people | -2.4% |
| 2013 | 540,276 people | -2.6% |
| 2014 | 524,921 people | -2.8% |
| 2015 | 508,625 people | -3.1% |
| 2016 | 491,228 people | -3.4% |
| 2017 | 472,660 people | -3.8% |
| 2018 | 452,819 people | -4.2% |
| 2019 | 431,683 people | -4.7% |
| 2020 | 409,313 people | -5.2% |
| 2021 | 385,775 people | -5.8% |
| 2022 | 361,186 people | -6.4% |
| 2023 | 335,652 people | -7.1% |
| 2024 | 309,081 people | -7.9% |
Benin compared with similar countries
- Benin's 309,081 people is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 222,289 people, 1.4× the median. (44 countries reporting)
- Benin's 309,081 people is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 528,044 people, 59% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 630,674 people | 592,574 people | 657,518 people | 10 |
| 2010s | 512,601 people | 431,683 people | 580,835 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 360,201 people | 309,081 people | 409,313 people | 5 |
Countries ranked near Benin
More environment data for Benin
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -9.6 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -10.11 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.268 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.29 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.38 % 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 2.92 % 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 rural areas in Benin?
- Drinking water services in rural areas in Benin was 309,081 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 in rural areas recorded in Benin?
- The highest recorded value was 657,518 people in 2000.
- What is the lowest drinking water services in rural areas recorded in Benin?
- The lowest recorded value was 309,081 people in 2024.
- How does Benin rank for drinking water services in rural areas?
- Benin ranks 50th out of 178 countries with data for 2024.
- Is drinking water services in rural areas rising or falling in Benin?
- Over the last ten years it is down 41.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Benin 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 in rural areas. 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.