Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Eritrea

Eritrea: Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services was 27.8% in 2016. ▼ Falling

Latest (2016)
27.8%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
176th
of 178 countries
All-time high
31.0%
in 2000
All-time low
27.8%
in 2012
Years of data
17
2000–2016

Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Eritrea, 2000–2016

01020302000200820162000: 31 %2001: 30.7 %2002: 30.5 %2003: 30.2 %2004: 29.9 %2005: 29.7 %2006: 29.4 %2007: 29.1 %2008: 28.9 %2009: 28.6 %2010: 28.3 %2011: 28.1 %2012: 27.8 %2013: 27.8 %2014: 27.8 %2015: 27.8 %2016: 27.8 %

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 the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Eritrea is 27.8%, measured in 2016. That is the lowest value across all 17 years on record.

The figure is down 5.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Eritrea peaked at 31.0% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 27.8%, in 2012.

Eritrea ranks 176th of 178 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 17 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 29.8% 28.6% 31.0% 10
2010s 27.9% 27.8% 28.3% 7

Countries ranked near Eritrea

  1. 173 Burkina Faso 34.4% compare
  2. 174 South Sudan 32.5% compare
  3. 175 Equatorial Guinea 30.8% compare
  4. 177 Central African Republic 27.4% compare
  5. 178 Democratic Republic of Congo 13.8% compare

See the full ranking of 178 places →

More environment data for Eritrea

All data for Eritrea →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Eritrea?
Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Eritrea was 27.8% in 2016, 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 Eritrea?
The highest recorded value was 31.0% in 2000.
What is the lowest share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services recorded in Eritrea?
The lowest recorded value was 27.8% in 2012.
How does Eritrea rank for share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services?
Eritrea ranks 176th out of 178 countries with data for 2016.
Is share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services rising or falling in Eritrea?
Over the last ten years it is down 5.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Eritrea 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

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About this data

Indicator
Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services
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
178 places, 4,351 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

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.