Share of population not using improved drinking water sources in Kenya
Kenya: Share of population not using improved drinking water sources was 25.6% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Share of population not using improved drinking water sources in Kenya, 2000–2024
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 population not using improved drinking water sources in Kenya is 25.6%, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is down 3.3% on the previous year and down 25.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population not using improved drinking water sources in Kenya peaked at 47.9% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 25.6%, in 2024.
That places Kenya 9th out of 231 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
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 43.6% | 39.2% | 47.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 34.1% | 30.0% | 38.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 27.4% | 25.6% | 29.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
- 6 Equatorial Guinea 32.4% compare
- 7 Eritrea 30.6% compare
- 8 Niger 29.8% compare
- 10 Mozambique 24.7% compare
- 11 Sierra Leone 24.4% compare
- 12 Guinea-Bissau 23.3% compare
More environment data for Kenya
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF 102.84 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF per capita 1.82 t CO2e/capita (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture 50.02 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) 3.41 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Fugitive Emissions (Energy) 7.97 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Industrial Combustion (Energy) 0.0511 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF 64.93 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) 0.0034 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Transport (Energy) 0.0653 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Waste 3.4 Mt CO2e (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population not using improved drinking water sources in Kenya?
- Share of population not using improved drinking water sources in Kenya was 25.6% 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 population not using improved drinking water sources recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 47.9% in 2000.
- What is the lowest share of population not using improved drinking water sources recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 25.6% in 2024.
- How does Kenya rank for share of population not using improved drinking water sources?
- Kenya ranks 9th out of 231 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of population not using improved drinking water sources rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is down 25.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Kenya 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 population not using improved drinking water sources. 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 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.