People not using improved drinking water sources in South Sudan

South Sudan: People not using improved drinking water sources was 2.67 million people in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
2.67 million people
Change on year
up 3.8%
World rank
30th
of 231 countries
All-time high
3.71 million people
in 2013
All-time low
2.47 million people
in 2022
Years of data
14
2011–2024

People not using improved drinking water sources in South Sudan, 2011–2024

01.0M2.0M3.0M4.0M2011201720242011: 3.7M people2012: 3.7M people2013: 3.7M people2014: 3.6M people2015: 3.4M people2016: 3.2M people2017: 2.9M people2018: 2.8M people2019: 2.7M people2020: 2.7M people2021: 2.6M people2022: 2.5M people2023: 2.6M people2024: 2.7M people

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, people not using improved drinking water sources in South Sudan stood at 2.67 million people.

The figure is up 3.8% on the previous year and down 25.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, people not using improved drinking water sources in South Sudan peaked at 3.71 million people in 2013 and was at its lowest, 2.47 million people, in 2022.

That places South Sudan 30th out of 231 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 14 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 3.30 million people 2.71 million people 3.71 million people 9
2020s 2.59 million people 2.47 million people 2.67 million people 5

Countries ranked near South Sudan

  1. 27 Somalia 3.25 million people compare
  2. 28 Sudan 3.20 million people compare
  3. 29 Zimbabwe 3.08 million people compare
  4. 31 Egypt 2.26 million people compare
  5. 32 Rwanda 2.26 million people compare
  6. 33 Mali 2.19 million people compare

See the full ranking of 231 places →

More environment data for South Sudan

All data for South Sudan →

Frequently asked questions

What is people not using improved drinking water sources in South Sudan?
People not using improved drinking water sources in South Sudan was 2.67 million 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 people not using improved drinking water sources recorded in South Sudan?
The highest recorded value was 3.71 million people in 2013.
What is the lowest people not using improved drinking water sources recorded in South Sudan?
The lowest recorded value was 2.47 million people in 2022.
How does South Sudan rank for people not using improved drinking water sources?
South Sudan ranks 30th out of 231 countries with data for 2024.
Is people not using improved drinking water sources rising or falling in South Sudan?
Over the last ten years it is down 25.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this South Sudan 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 People not using improved drinking water sources. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 14 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
People not using improved drinking water sources
Unit
people
Source
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
231 places, 5,586 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Number of people not using improved drinking water sources. These people might use surface water sources or unprotected springs or wells, as no safe and reliable improved drinking water source is available to them.