Share of population using at least a basic drinking water source in Jamaica
Jamaica: Share of population using at least a basic drinking water source was 87.6% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Share of population using at least a basic drinking water source in Jamaica, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of population using at least a basic drinking water source in Jamaica is 87.6%, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is down 0.4% on the previous year and down 3.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population using at least a basic drinking water source in Jamaica peaked at 93.6% in 2003 and was at its lowest, 87.6%, in 2024.
That places Jamaica 178th out of 231 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Share of population using at least a basic drinking water source in Jamaica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 93.0% | — |
| 2001 | 93.2% | +0.2% |
| 2002 | 93.4% | +0.2% |
| 2003 | 93.6% | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 93.5% | -0.1% |
| 2005 | 93.5% | -0.1% |
| 2006 | 93.4% | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 93.1% | -0.3% |
| 2008 | 92.7% | -0.3% |
| 2009 | 92.4% | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 92.1% | -0.3% |
| 2011 | 91.8% | -0.3% |
| 2012 | 91.5% | -0.3% |
| 2013 | 91.2% | -0.3% |
| 2014 | 90.8% | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 90.5% | -0.4% |
| 2016 | 90.2% | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 89.9% | -0.4% |
| 2018 | 89.6% | -0.4% |
| 2019 | 89.2% | -0.4% |
| 2020 | 88.9% | -0.4% |
| 2021 | 88.6% | -0.4% |
| 2022 | 88.2% | -0.4% |
| 2023 | 87.9% | -0.4% |
| 2024 | 87.6% | -0.4% |
Jamaica compared with similar countries
- Jamaica's 87.6% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 96.7%, 91% of the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Jamaica's 87.6% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 98.0%, 89% of the median. (41 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 93.2% | 92.4% | 93.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 90.7% | 89.2% | 92.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 88.2% | 87.6% | 88.9% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Jamaica
More environment data for Jamaica
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -2.93 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -3.15 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.284 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.76 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 4.23 % 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 -0.7158 % 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 share of population using at least a basic drinking water source in Jamaica?
- Share of population using at least a basic drinking water source in Jamaica was 87.6% 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 share of population using at least a basic drinking water source recorded in Jamaica?
- The highest recorded value was 93.6% in 2003.
- What is the lowest share of population using at least a basic drinking water source recorded in Jamaica?
- The lowest recorded value was 87.6% in 2024.
- How does Jamaica rank for share of population using at least a basic drinking water source?
- Jamaica ranks 178th out of 231 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of population using at least a basic drinking water source rising or falling in Jamaica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Jamaica 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 Share of population using at least a basic drinking water source. 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
Proportion of people who use an improved drinking water source, which is either located on their premises, or at a collection point, which takes no more than 30 minutes for a roundtrip.