People in rural areas not using an improved water source in Tanzania

Tanzania: People in rural areas not using an improved water source was 14.74 million people in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
14.74 million people
Change on year
down 2.9%
World rank
6th
of 178 countries
All-time high
19.90 million people
in 2000
All-time low
14.74 million people
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

People in rural areas not using an improved water source in Tanzania, 2000–2024

05.0M10.0M15.0M20.0M2000201220242000: 19.9M people2001: 19.9M people2002: 19.9M people2003: 19.8M people2004: 19.7M people2005: 19.6M people2006: 19.4M people2007: 19.3M people2008: 19.1M people2009: 18.9M people2010: 18.7M people2011: 18.5M people2012: 18.3M people2013: 18.1M people2014: 17.9M people2015: 17.7M people2016: 17.5M people2017: 17.3M people2018: 17.0M people2019: 16.7M people2020: 16.4M people2021: 16.0M people2022: 15.6M people2023: 15.2M people2024: 14.7M people

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for people in rural areas not using an improved water source in Tanzania is 14.74 million people, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.9% on the previous year and down 17.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, people in rural areas not using an improved water source in Tanzania peaked at 19.90 million people in 2000 and was at its lowest, 14.74 million people, in 2024.

That places Tanzania 6th out of 178 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 19.55 million people 18.92 million people 19.90 million people 10
2010s 17.77 million people 16.70 million people 18.69 million people 10
2020s 15.58 million people 14.74 million people 16.36 million people 5

Countries ranked near Tanzania

  1. 3 Nigeria 28.85 million people compare
  2. 4 Ethiopia 21.08 million people compare
  3. 5 India 19.16 million people compare
  4. 7 Kenya 13.15 million people compare
  5. 8 Indonesia 11.68 million people compare
  6. 9 Madagascar 10.89 million people compare

See the full ranking of 178 places →

More environment data for Tanzania

All data for Tanzania →

Frequently asked questions

What is people in rural areas not using an improved water source in Tanzania?
People in rural areas not using an improved water source in Tanzania was 14.74 million 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 Tanzania?
The highest recorded value was 19.90 million people in 2000.
What is the lowest people in rural areas not using an improved water source recorded in Tanzania?
The lowest recorded value was 14.74 million people in 2024.
How does Tanzania rank for people in rural areas not using an improved water source?
Tanzania ranks 6th out of 178 countries with data for 2024.
Is people in rural areas not using an improved water source rising or falling in Tanzania?
Over the last ten years it is down 17.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Tanzania 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

Indicator
People in rural areas not using an improved water source
Unit
people
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

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.