Share using safely managed drinking water in Nepal

Nepal: Share using safely managed drinking water was 16.5% in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
16.5%
Change on year
up 0.8%
World rank
156th
of 163 countries
All-time high
29.8%
in 2012
All-time low
16.1%
in 2021
Years of data
25
2000–2024

Share using safely managed drinking water in Nepal, 2000–2024

01020302000201220242000: 26.8 %2001: 27.1 %2002: 27.3 %2003: 27.6 %2004: 27.8 %2005: 28.1 %2006: 28.4 %2007: 28.6 %2008: 28.8 %2009: 29.1 %2010: 29.3 %2011: 29.6 %2012: 29.8 %2013: 28.4 %2014: 26.9 %2015: 25.5 %2016: 24 %2017: 22.4 %2018: 20.9 %2019: 19.3 %2020: 17.7 %2021: 16.1 %2022: 16.2 %2023: 16.3 %2024: 16.5 %

Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 2024, share using safely managed drinking water in Nepal stood at 16.5%.

That represents a change of up 0.8% on the previous year and down 38.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share using safely managed drinking water in Nepal peaked at 29.8% in 2012 and was at its lowest, 16.1%, in 2021.

Nepal ranks 156th of 163 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 28.0% 26.8% 29.1% 10
2010s 25.6% 19.3% 29.8% 10
2020s 16.6% 16.1% 17.7% 5

Countries ranked near Nepal

  1. 153 Malawi 18.2% compare
  2. 154 Uganda 18.1% compare
  3. 155 Benin 17.7% compare
  4. 157 Kiribati 15.1% compare
  5. 158 Ethiopia 13.5% compare
  6. 159 Democratic Republic of Congo 11.9% compare

See the full ranking of 163 places →

More environment data for Nepal

All data for Nepal →

Frequently asked questions

What is share using safely managed drinking water in Nepal?
Share using safely managed drinking water in Nepal was 16.5% 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 using safely managed drinking water recorded in Nepal?
The highest recorded value was 29.8% in 2012.
What is the lowest share using safely managed drinking water recorded in Nepal?
The lowest recorded value was 16.1% in 2021.
How does Nepal rank for share using safely managed drinking water?
Nepal ranks 156th out of 163 countries with data for 2024.
Is share using safely managed drinking water rising or falling in Nepal?
Over the last ten years it is down 38.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Nepal 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 using safely managed drinking water. 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

Indicator
Share using safely managed drinking water
Unit
%
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
163 places, 3,991 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Proportion of people using an improved drinking water source that is located on premises, available when needed and free from faecal and priority chemical contamination.