Share of population not using improved drinking water sources in Pakistan
Pakistan: Share of population not using improved drinking water sources was 4.9% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Share of population not using improved drinking water sources in Pakistan, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Pakistan recorded 4.9% for share of population not using improved drinking water sources in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.3% on the previous year and down 27.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population not using improved drinking water sources in Pakistan peaked at 10.0% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 4.9%, in 2024.
Pakistan ranks 63rd of 231 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Share of population not using improved drinking water sources in Pakistan, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 10.0% | — |
| 2001 | 9.8% | -2.4% |
| 2002 | 9.5% | -2.5% |
| 2003 | 9.3% | -2.5% |
| 2004 | 9.0% | -2.6% |
| 2005 | 8.8% | -2.6% |
| 2006 | 8.6% | -2.7% |
| 2007 | 8.3% | -2.8% |
| 2008 | 8.1% | -2.8% |
| 2009 | 7.9% | -2.9% |
| 2010 | 7.6% | -3.0% |
| 2011 | 7.4% | -3.1% |
| 2012 | 7.2% | -3.1% |
| 2013 | 6.9% | -3.2% |
| 2014 | 6.7% | -3.3% |
| 2015 | 6.5% | -3.4% |
| 2016 | 6.2% | -3.5% |
| 2017 | 6.0% | -3.6% |
| 2018 | 5.8% | -3.8% |
| 2019 | 5.6% | -3.9% |
| 2020 | 5.3% | -4.1% |
| 2021 | 5.1% | -4.2% |
| 2022 | 4.9% | -4.4% |
| 2023 | 4.9% | -0.2% |
| 2024 | 4.9% | -0.3% |
Pakistan compared with similar countries
- Pakistan's 4.9% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 8.0%, 60% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Pakistan's 4.9% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 0.3%, 19.0× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 8.9% | 7.9% | 10.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.6% | 5.6% | 7.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.0% | 4.9% | 5.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Pakistan
- 60 North Korea 5.4% compare
- 61 Guatemala 5.2% compare
- 62 French Guiana 5.2% compare
- 64 Djibouti 4.7% compare
- 65 Falkland Islands 4.7% compare
- 66 Indonesia 4.7% compare
More environment data for Pakistan
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -10.53 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -7.64 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.373 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.58 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.7034 % 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 3.1 % 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 population not using improved drinking water sources in Pakistan?
- Share of population not using improved drinking water sources in Pakistan was 4.9% 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 population not using improved drinking water sources recorded in Pakistan?
- The highest recorded value was 10.0% in 2000.
- What is the lowest share of population not using improved drinking water sources recorded in Pakistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.9% in 2024.
- How does Pakistan rank for share of population not using improved drinking water sources?
- Pakistan ranks 63rd out of 231 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of population not using improved drinking water sources rising or falling in Pakistan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 27.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Pakistan 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.