Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Lesotho
Lesotho: Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas was 69.4% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas 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 %.
Analysis
In 2024, using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Lesotho stood at 69.4%. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.1% on the previous year and up 12.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Lesotho peaked at 69.4% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 43.8%, in 2000.
Lesotho ranks 58th of 105 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 43.8% | — |
| 2001 | 45.1% | +3.0% |
| 2002 | 46.4% | +2.9% |
| 2003 | 47.8% | +2.9% |
| 2004 | 49.1% | +2.8% |
| 2005 | 50.4% | +2.7% |
| 2006 | 51.8% | +2.7% |
| 2007 | 53.1% | +2.6% |
| 2008 | 54.5% | +2.5% |
| 2009 | 55.8% | +2.5% |
| 2010 | 57.2% | +2.4% |
| 2011 | 58.6% | +2.4% |
| 2012 | 59.9% | +2.3% |
| 2013 | 60.9% | +1.7% |
| 2014 | 61.7% | +1.2% |
| 2015 | 62.5% | +1.2% |
| 2016 | 63.2% | +1.2% |
| 2017 | 64.0% | +1.2% |
| 2018 | 64.7% | +1.2% |
| 2019 | 65.5% | +1.2% |
| 2020 | 66.3% | +1.2% |
| 2021 | 67.0% | +1.2% |
| 2022 | 67.8% | +1.2% |
| 2023 | 68.6% | +1.1% |
| 2024 | 69.4% | +1.1% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 69.4% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 55.4%, 1.3× the median. (29 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 69.4% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 45.2%, 1.5× the median. (27 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 49.8% | 43.8% | 55.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 61.8% | 57.2% | 65.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 67.8% | 66.3% | 69.4% | 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 using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Lesotho?
- Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Lesotho was 69.4% 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 using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 69.4% in 2024.
- What is the lowest using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 43.8% in 2000.
- How does Lesotho rank for using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas?
- Lesotho ranks 58th out of 105 countries with data for 2024.
- Is using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- 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 Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas. 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 using an improved drinking water source that is located on premises, available when needed and free from fecal and priority chemical contamination.