Drinking water services in rural areas in Namibia
Namibia: Drinking water services in rural areas was 79,040 people in 2024. ▼ Falling
Drinking water services in rural areas 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
In 2024, drinking water services in rural areas in Namibia stood at 79,040 people. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is down 3.1% on the previous year and down 19.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, drinking water services in rural areas in Namibia peaked at 131,002 people in 2000 and was at its lowest, 79,040 people, in 2024.
Namibia ranks 64th of 178 countries on this measure, 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 Namibia, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 131,002 people | — |
| 2001 | 130,263 people | -0.6% |
| 2002 | 128,379 people | -1.4% |
| 2003 | 125,914 people | -1.9% |
| 2004 | 123,189 people | -2.2% |
| 2005 | 120,403 people | -2.3% |
| 2006 | 117,610 people | -2.3% |
| 2007 | 114,846 people | -2.4% |
| 2008 | 112,123 people | -2.4% |
| 2009 | 109,451 people | -2.4% |
| 2010 | 106,821 people | -2.4% |
| 2011 | 104,332 people | -2.3% |
| 2012 | 102,272 people | -2.0% |
| 2013 | 100,523 people | -1.7% |
| 2014 | 98,706 people | -1.8% |
| 2015 | 96,855 people | -1.9% |
| 2016 | 95,002 people | -1.9% |
| 2017 | 93,147 people | -2.0% |
| 2018 | 91,288 people | -2.0% |
| 2019 | 89,414 people | -2.1% |
| 2020 | 87,600 people | -2.0% |
| 2021 | 85,782 people | -2.1% |
| 2022 | 83,779 people | -2.3% |
| 2023 | 81,527 people | -2.7% |
| 2024 | 79,040 people | -3.1% |
Namibia compared with similar countries
- Namibia's 79,040 people is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 222,289 people, 36% of the median. (44 countries reporting)
- Namibia's 79,040 people is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 528,044 people, 15% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 121,318 people | 109,451 people | 131,002 people | 10 |
| 2010s | 97,836 people | 89,414 people | 106,821 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 83,546 people | 79,040 people | 87,600 people | 5 |
Countries ranked near Namibia
- 61 Turkey 96,895 people compare
- 62 Equatorial Guinea 95,622 people compare
- 63 Lesotho 82,624 people compare
- 65 Mali 76,905 people compare
- 66 North Korea 68,600 people compare
- 67 East Timor 68,246 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 rural areas in Namibia?
- Drinking water services in rural areas in Namibia was 79,040 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 Namibia?
- The highest recorded value was 131,002 people in 2000.
- What is the lowest drinking water services in rural areas recorded in Namibia?
- The lowest recorded value was 79,040 people in 2024.
- How does Namibia rank for drinking water services in rural areas?
- Namibia ranks 64th out of 178 countries with data for 2024.
- Is drinking water services in rural areas rising or falling in Namibia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 19.9%. 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 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.