Municipal water withdrawal in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: Municipal water withdrawal was 223.50 million cubic meters in 2023. ▲ Rising
Municipal water withdrawal in Papua New Guinea, 1987–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in cubic meters.
Analysis
The most recent figure for municipal water withdrawal in Papua New Guinea is 223.50 million cubic meters, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 37 years on record.
That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, municipal water withdrawal in Papua New Guinea peaked at 223.50 million cubic meters in 2005 and was at its lowest, 29.00 million cubic meters, in 1987.
That places Papua New Guinea 117th out of 183 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 37 years of available data.
Municipal water withdrawal in Papua New Guinea, year by year
| Year | cubic meters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 29.00 million cubic meters | — |
| 1988 | 38.65 million cubic meters | +33.3% |
| 1989 | 48.31 million cubic meters | +25.0% |
| 1990 | 57.96 million cubic meters | +20.0% |
| 1991 | 67.62 million cubic meters | +16.7% |
| 1992 | 77.27 million cubic meters | +14.3% |
| 1993 | 86.92 million cubic meters | +12.5% |
| 1994 | 96.58 million cubic meters | +11.1% |
| 1995 | 106.23 million cubic meters | +10.0% |
| 1996 | 115.89 million cubic meters | +9.1% |
| 1997 | 125.54 million cubic meters | +8.3% |
| 1998 | 135.19 million cubic meters | +7.7% |
| 1999 | 144.85 million cubic meters | +7.1% |
| 2000 | 154.50 million cubic meters | +6.7% |
| 2001 | 168.30 million cubic meters | +8.9% |
| 2002 | 182.10 million cubic meters | +8.2% |
| 2003 | 195.90 million cubic meters | +7.6% |
| 2004 | 209.70 million cubic meters | +7.0% |
| 2005 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +6.6% |
| 2006 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 223.50 million cubic meters | +0.0% |
Papua New Guinea compared with similar countries
- Papua New Guinea's 223.50 million cubic meters is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 245.90 million cubic meters, 91% of the median. (44 countries reporting)
- Papua New Guinea's 223.50 million cubic meters is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 1.04 billion cubic meters, 21% of the median. (20 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Municipal water withdrawal in Papua New Guinea changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | +33.3% | 29.00 million cubic meters | 38.65 million cubic meters |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 38.65 million cubic meters | 29.00 million cubic meters | 48.31 million cubic meters | 3 |
| 1990s | 101.40 million cubic meters | 57.96 million cubic meters | 144.85 million cubic meters | 10 |
| 2000s | 202.80 million cubic meters | 154.50 million cubic meters | 223.50 million cubic meters | 10 |
| 2010s | 223.50 million cubic meters | 223.50 million cubic meters | 223.50 million cubic meters | 10 |
| 2020s | 223.50 million cubic meters | 223.50 million cubic meters | 223.50 million cubic meters | 4 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
- 115 Albania 226.00 million cubic meters compare
- 116 Kyrgyzstan 224.00 million cubic meters compare
- 118 Afghanistan 203.40 million cubic meters compare
- 119 Singapore 198.21 million cubic meters compare
- 120 Niger 193.25 million cubic meters compare
More environment data for Papua New Guinea
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 1.56 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 2.24 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.183 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 0.834 °C (2025)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 3.8 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) (Mt CO2e) 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) (Mt CO2e), per 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is municipal water withdrawal in Papua New Guinea?
- Municipal water withdrawal in Papua New Guinea was 223.50 million cubic meters in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest municipal water withdrawal recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 223.50 million cubic meters in 2005.
- What is the lowest municipal water withdrawal recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was 29.00 million cubic meters in 1987.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for municipal water withdrawal?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 117th out of 183 countries with data for 2023.
- Is municipal water withdrawal rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Municipal water withdrawal. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 37 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Water withdrawn each year for direct use by the population, usually measured as the total supplied by the public distribution network.