Drinking water usage in urban areas in Eswatini
Eswatini: Drinking water usage in urban areas was 1,871 people in 2024. ▼ Falling
Drinking water usage in urban areas in Eswatini, 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
Eswatini recorded 1,871 people for drinking water usage in urban areas in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 20.5% on the previous year and down 69.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, drinking water usage in urban areas in Eswatini peaked at 11,044 people in 2000 and was at its lowest, 1,871 people, in 2024.
That places Eswatini 60th out of 188 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 usage in urban areas in Eswatini, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 11,044 people | — |
| 2001 | 10,680 people | -3.3% |
| 2002 | 10,300 people | -3.6% |
| 2003 | 9,907 people | -3.8% |
| 2004 | 9,506 people | -4.1% |
| 2005 | 9,099 people | -4.3% |
| 2006 | 8,688 people | -4.5% |
| 2007 | 8,302 people | -4.4% |
| 2008 | 8,030 people | -3.3% |
| 2009 | 7,744 people | -3.6% |
| 2010 | 7,441 people | -3.9% |
| 2011 | 7,125 people | -4.2% |
| 2012 | 6,775 people | -4.9% |
| 2013 | 6,416 people | -5.3% |
| 2014 | 6,047 people | -5.7% |
| 2015 | 5,670 people | -6.2% |
| 2016 | 5,284 people | -6.8% |
| 2017 | 4,898 people | -7.3% |
| 2018 | 4,507 people | -8.0% |
| 2019 | 4,104 people | -8.9% |
| 2020 | 3,692 people | -10.0% |
| 2021 | 3,267 people | -11.5% |
| 2022 | 2,820 people | -13.7% |
| 2023 | 2,354 people | -16.5% |
| 2024 | 1,871 people | -20.5% |
Eswatini compared with similar countries
- Eswatini's 1,871 people is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 6,494 people, 29% of the median. (44 countries reporting)
- Eswatini's 1,871 people is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 10,146 people, 18% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 9,330 people | 7,744 people | 11,044 people | 10 |
| 2010s | 5,827 people | 4,104 people | 7,441 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 2,801 people | 1,871 people | 3,692 people | 5 |
Countries ranked near Eswatini
- 57 Equatorial Guinea 3,410 people compare
- 58 Lesotho 3,071 people compare
- 59 Botswana 2,188 people compare
- 61 Cuba 1,381 people compare
- 62 Central African Republic 1,337 people compare
- 63 Guinea-Bissau 1,315 people compare
More environment data for Eswatini
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.321 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.02 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.2772 % 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 -2.19 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) (Mt CO2e), annual 0 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is drinking water usage in urban areas in Eswatini?
- Drinking water usage in urban areas in Eswatini was 1,871 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 usage in urban areas recorded in Eswatini?
- The highest recorded value was 11,044 people in 2000.
- What is the lowest drinking water usage in urban areas recorded in Eswatini?
- The lowest recorded value was 1,871 people in 2024.
- How does Eswatini rank for drinking water usage in urban areas?
- Eswatini ranks 60th out of 188 countries with data for 2024.
- Is drinking water usage in urban areas rising or falling in Eswatini?
- Over the last ten years it is down 69.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Eswatini 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 usage in urban 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.