Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Rwanda
Rwanda: Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas was 53.4% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Rwanda, 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 Rwanda stood at 53.4%. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.5% on the previous year and up 29.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Rwanda peaked at 53.4% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 25.0%, in 2000.
Rwanda ranks 73rd 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 Rwanda, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 25.0% | — |
| 2001 | 26.1% | +4.4% |
| 2002 | 27.2% | +4.3% |
| 2003 | 28.3% | +4.1% |
| 2004 | 29.4% | +4.0% |
| 2005 | 30.6% | +3.9% |
| 2006 | 31.7% | +3.8% |
| 2007 | 32.9% | +3.7% |
| 2008 | 34.1% | +3.6% |
| 2009 | 35.3% | +3.5% |
| 2010 | 36.5% | +3.4% |
| 2011 | 37.7% | +3.3% |
| 2012 | 38.9% | +3.3% |
| 2013 | 40.1% | +3.2% |
| 2014 | 41.4% | +3.1% |
| 2015 | 42.6% | +3.0% |
| 2016 | 43.9% | +3.0% |
| 2017 | 45.2% | +2.9% |
| 2018 | 46.5% | +2.9% |
| 2019 | 47.8% | +2.8% |
| 2020 | 49.1% | +2.8% |
| 2021 | 50.4% | +2.7% |
| 2022 | 51.8% | +2.7% |
| 2023 | 53.1% | +2.6% |
| 2024 | 53.4% | +0.5% |
Rwanda compared with similar countries
- Rwanda's 53.4% is above the median for low income countries, which is 38.5%, 1.4× the median. (14 countries reporting)
- Rwanda's 53.4% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 45.2%, 1.2× the median. (27 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 30.0% | 25.0% | 35.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 42.1% | 36.5% | 47.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 51.6% | 49.1% | 53.4% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Rwanda
More environment data for Rwanda
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -5.64 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -5.05 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate -31.63 % change on previous year (2013)
- Standard Deviation 0.268 °C (2013)
- Temperature change 1.35 °C (2013)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.0359 % 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 -1.42 % 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 Rwanda?
- Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in Rwanda was 53.4% 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 Rwanda?
- The highest recorded value was 53.4% in 2024.
- What is the lowest using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Rwanda?
- The lowest recorded value was 25.0% in 2000.
- How does Rwanda rank for using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas?
- Rwanda ranks 73rd out of 105 countries with data for 2024.
- Is using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas rising or falling in Rwanda?
- Over the last ten years it is up 29.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Rwanda 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.