People not using safely managed drinking water sources in Bhutan
Bhutan: People not using safely managed drinking water sources was 272,330 people in 2024. ▼ Falling
People not using safely managed drinking water sources in Bhutan, 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
Bhutan recorded 272,330 people for people not using safely managed drinking water sources in 2024.
The figure is up 3.9% on the previous year and down 34.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, people not using safely managed drinking water sources in Bhutan peaked at 476,513 people in 2010 and was at its lowest, 251,588 people, in 2022.
That places Bhutan 92nd out of 163 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.
People not using safely managed drinking water sources in Bhutan, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 427,114 people | — |
| 2001 | 434,585 people | +1.7% |
| 2002 | 441,726 people | +1.6% |
| 2003 | 448,510 people | +1.5% |
| 2004 | 454,933 people | +1.4% |
| 2005 | 460,227 people | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 464,230 people | +0.9% |
| 2007 | 467,439 people | +0.7% |
| 2008 | 470,524 people | +0.7% |
| 2009 | 473,531 people | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 476,513 people | +0.6% |
| 2011 | 462,206 people | -3.0% |
| 2012 | 447,659 people | -3.1% |
| 2013 | 432,833 people | -3.3% |
| 2014 | 412,718 people | -4.6% |
| 2015 | 391,776 people | -5.1% |
| 2016 | 370,129 people | -5.5% |
| 2017 | 347,552 people | -6.1% |
| 2018 | 324,658 people | -6.6% |
| 2019 | 301,400 people | -7.2% |
| 2020 | 280,136 people | -7.1% |
| 2021 | 258,872 people | -7.6% |
| 2022 | 251,588 people | -2.8% |
| 2023 | 262,227 people | +4.2% |
| 2024 | 272,330 people | +3.9% |
Bhutan compared with similar countries
- Bhutan's 272,330 people is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 7.56 million people, 4% of the median. (31 countries reporting)
- Bhutan's 272,330 people is below the median for South Asia, which is 24.76 million people, 1% of the median. (5 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 454,282 people | 427,114 people | 473,531 people | 10 |
| 2010s | 396,744 people | 301,400 people | 476,513 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 265,031 people | 251,588 people | 280,136 people | 5 |
Countries ranked near Bhutan
More environment data for Bhutan
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 0.2782 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 0.5977 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.257 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 2.08 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.487 % 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 -5.53 % 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 people not using safely managed drinking water sources in Bhutan?
- People not using safely managed drinking water sources in Bhutan was 272,330 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 safely managed drinking water sources recorded in Bhutan?
- The highest recorded value was 476,513 people in 2010.
- What is the lowest people not using safely managed drinking water sources recorded in Bhutan?
- The lowest recorded value was 251,588 people in 2022.
- How does Bhutan rank for people not using safely managed drinking water sources?
- Bhutan ranks 92nd out of 163 countries with data for 2024.
- Is people not using safely managed drinking water sources rising or falling in Bhutan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 34.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Bhutan 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 safely managed drinking water sources. 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
People not using safely managed drinking water sources either use unimproved drinking water sources or the improved sources they use are not located on their premises, not available when needed, or not free of contamination.