Drinking water usage in urban areas in Mozambique
Mozambique: Drinking water usage in urban areas was 174,929 people in 2024. ▼ Falling
Drinking water usage in urban areas in Mozambique, 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 usage in urban areas in Mozambique stood at 174,929 people. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is down 7.2% on the previous year and down 31.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, drinking water usage in urban areas in Mozambique peaked at 272,269 people in 2001 and was at its lowest, 174,929 people, in 2024.
That places Mozambique 15th out of 188 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Drinking water usage in urban areas in Mozambique, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 264,648 people | — |
| 2001 | 272,269 people | +2.9% |
| 2002 | 271,097 people | -0.4% |
| 2003 | 269,673 people | -0.5% |
| 2004 | 267,986 people | -0.6% |
| 2005 | 266,037 people | -0.7% |
| 2006 | 263,840 people | -0.8% |
| 2007 | 261,333 people | -1.0% |
| 2008 | 261,069 people | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 260,848 people | -0.1% |
| 2010 | 260,339 people | -0.2% |
| 2011 | 259,541 people | -0.3% |
| 2012 | 258,341 people | -0.5% |
| 2013 | 256,517 people | -0.7% |
| 2014 | 253,986 people | -1.0% |
| 2015 | 250,671 people | -1.3% |
| 2016 | 246,580 people | -1.6% |
| 2017 | 241,703 people | -2.0% |
| 2018 | 235,814 people | -2.4% |
| 2019 | 228,779 people | -3.0% |
| 2020 | 220,666 people | -3.5% |
| 2021 | 211,327 people | -4.2% |
| 2022 | 200,645 people | -5.1% |
| 2023 | 188,571 people | -6.0% |
| 2024 | 174,929 people | -7.2% |
Mozambique compared with similar countries
- Mozambique's 174,929 people is above the median for low income countries, which is 16,882 people, 10.4× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Mozambique's 174,929 people is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 10,146 people, 17.2× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 265,880 people | 260,848 people | 272,269 people | 10 |
| 2010s | 249,227 people | 228,779 people | 260,339 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 199,228 people | 174,929 people | 220,666 people | 5 |
Countries ranked near Mozambique
More environment data for Mozambique
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -3.62 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -2.58 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.256 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.23 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual -2.02 % 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 0.2476 % 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 usage in urban areas in Mozambique?
- Drinking water usage in urban areas in Mozambique was 174,929 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 Mozambique?
- The highest recorded value was 272,269 people in 2001.
- What is the lowest drinking water usage in urban areas recorded in Mozambique?
- The lowest recorded value was 174,929 people in 2024.
- How does Mozambique rank for drinking water usage in urban areas?
- Mozambique ranks 15th out of 188 countries with data for 2024.
- Is drinking water usage in urban areas rising or falling in Mozambique?
- Over the last ten years it is down 31.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Mozambique 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.