Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Nepal
Nepal: Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas was 23.6% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Nepal, 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 Nepal stood at 23.6%.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.1% on the previous year and down 32.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Nepal peaked at 38.1% in 2012 and was at its lowest, 23.5%, in 2021.
That places Nepal 99th out of 105 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Nepal, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 37.6% | — |
| 2001 | 37.6% | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 37.7% | +0.1% |
| 2003 | 37.7% | +0.1% |
| 2004 | 37.8% | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 37.8% | +0.1% |
| 2006 | 37.9% | +0.1% |
| 2007 | 37.9% | +0.1% |
| 2008 | 38.0% | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 38.0% | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 38.1% | +0.1% |
| 2011 | 38.1% | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 38.1% | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 36.5% | -4.2% |
| 2014 | 34.9% | -4.4% |
| 2015 | 33.3% | -4.6% |
| 2016 | 31.7% | -4.9% |
| 2017 | 30.1% | -5.1% |
| 2018 | 28.4% | -5.4% |
| 2019 | 26.8% | -5.7% |
| 2020 | 25.2% | -6.1% |
| 2021 | 23.5% | -6.5% |
| 2022 | 23.6% | +0.1% |
| 2023 | 23.6% | +0.1% |
| 2024 | 23.6% | +0.1% |
Nepal compared with similar countries
- Nepal's 23.6% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 55.4%, 43% of the median. (29 countries reporting)
- Nepal's 23.6% is below the median for South Asia, which is 61.5%, 38% of the median. (5 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 37.8% | 37.6% | 38.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 33.6% | 26.8% | 38.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 23.9% | 23.5% | 25.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Nepal
More environment data for Nepal
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 2.73 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 2.41 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.265 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.43 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual -1.54 % 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 -6.53 % 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 using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Nepal?
- Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Nepal was 23.6% 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 using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Nepal?
- The highest recorded value was 38.1% in 2012.
- What is the lowest using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Nepal?
- The lowest recorded value was 23.5% in 2021.
- How does Nepal rank for using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas?
- Nepal ranks 99th out of 105 countries with data for 2024.
- Is using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas rising or falling in Nepal?
- Over the last ten years it is down 32.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Nepal 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.