People in rural areas not using an improved water source in Lesotho
Lesotho: People in rural areas not using an improved water source was 271,214 people in 2024. ▼ Falling
People in rural areas not using an improved water source in Lesotho, 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
Lesotho recorded 271,214 people for people in rural areas not using an improved water source in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of down 2.2% on the previous year and down 16.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, people in rural areas not using an improved water source in Lesotho peaked at 447,370 people in 2000 and was at its lowest, 271,214 people, in 2024.
That places Lesotho 72nd out of 178 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 in rural areas not using an improved water source in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 447,370 people | — |
| 2001 | 436,503 people | -2.4% |
| 2002 | 425,039 people | -2.6% |
| 2003 | 412,965 people | -2.8% |
| 2004 | 400,149 people | -3.1% |
| 2005 | 386,715 people | -3.4% |
| 2006 | 375,446 people | -2.9% |
| 2007 | 367,825 people | -2.0% |
| 2008 | 361,106 people | -1.8% |
| 2009 | 354,520 people | -1.8% |
| 2010 | 348,033 people | -1.8% |
| 2011 | 341,870 people | -1.8% |
| 2012 | 336,601 people | -1.5% |
| 2013 | 331,509 people | -1.5% |
| 2014 | 326,510 people | -1.5% |
| 2015 | 321,511 people | -1.5% |
| 2016 | 316,563 people | -1.5% |
| 2017 | 311,589 people | -1.6% |
| 2018 | 306,406 people | -1.7% |
| 2019 | 300,959 people | -1.8% |
| 2020 | 295,410 people | -1.8% |
| 2021 | 289,636 people | -2.0% |
| 2022 | 283,547 people | -2.1% |
| 2023 | 277,418 people | -2.2% |
| 2024 | 271,214 people | -2.2% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 271,214 people is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 796,634 people, 34% of the median. (44 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 271,214 people is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1.93 million people, 14% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 396,764 people | 354,520 people | 447,370 people | 10 |
| 2010s | 324,155 people | 300,959 people | 348,033 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 283,445 people | 271,214 people | 295,410 people | 5 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More environment data for Lesotho
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.284 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 0.783 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual -0.521 % 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 -2.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) (Mt CO2e), annual -0.4197 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is people in rural areas not using an improved water source in Lesotho?
- People in rural areas not using an improved water source in Lesotho was 271,214 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 in rural areas not using an improved water source recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 447,370 people in 2000.
- What is the lowest people in rural areas not using an improved water source recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 271,214 people in 2024.
- How does Lesotho rank for people in rural areas not using an improved water source?
- Lesotho ranks 72nd out of 178 countries with data for 2024.
- Is people in rural areas not using an improved water source rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 16.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Lesotho 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 in rural areas not using an improved 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
Number of people not using improved drinking water sources. These people might use surface water sources or unprotected springs or wells, as no safe and reliable improved drinking water source is available to them.