Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Botswana
Botswana: Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services was 77.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Botswana, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Botswana recorded 77.9% for share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 12.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Botswana peaked at 77.9% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 54.0%, in 2000.
Botswana ranks 129th of 178 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Botswana, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 54.0% | — |
| 2001 | 54.0% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 54.0% | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 54.1% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 54.1% | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 54.1% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 55.8% | +3.1% |
| 2007 | 57.5% | +3.0% |
| 2008 | 59.1% | +2.9% |
| 2009 | 60.8% | +2.8% |
| 2010 | 62.5% | +2.8% |
| 2011 | 64.2% | +2.7% |
| 2012 | 65.9% | +2.6% |
| 2013 | 67.6% | +2.6% |
| 2014 | 69.3% | +2.5% |
| 2015 | 70.9% | +2.4% |
| 2016 | 72.6% | +2.4% |
| 2017 | 74.3% | +2.3% |
| 2018 | 76.0% | +2.3% |
| 2019 | 77.7% | +2.2% |
| 2020 | 77.7% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 77.8% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 77.8% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 77.9% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 77.9% | +0.0% |
Botswana compared with similar countries
- Botswana's 77.9% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 94.8%, 82% of the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Botswana's 77.9% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 58.5%, 1.3× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 55.8% | 54.0% | 60.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 70.1% | 62.5% | 77.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 77.8% | 77.7% | 77.9% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Botswana
More environment data for Botswana
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 6.04 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 6.49 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.381 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 0.443 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual -4.05 % 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 0.3323 % 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 the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Botswana?
- Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Botswana was 77.9% 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 the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services recorded in Botswana?
- The highest recorded value was 77.9% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services recorded in Botswana?
- The lowest recorded value was 54.0% in 2000.
- How does Botswana rank for share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services?
- Botswana ranks 129th out of 178 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services rising or falling in Botswana?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Botswana 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 the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services. 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.