Using at least basic drinking water sources in urban vs. rural areas in Lesotho

Lesotho: Using at least basic drinking water sources in urban vs. rural areas was 94.7% in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
94.7%
Change on year
up 0.6%
World rank
138th
of 188 countries
All-time high
94.7%
in 2024
All-time low
80.9%
in 2000
Years of data
25
2000–2024

Using at least basic drinking water sources in urban vs. rural areas in Lesotho, 2000–2024

0204060801002000201220242000: 80.9 %2001: 81.5 %2002: 82.1 %2003: 82.6 %2004: 83.2 %2005: 83.7 %2006: 84.3 %2007: 84.9 %2008: 85.4 %2009: 86 %2010: 86.6 %2011: 87.1 %2012: 87.7 %2013: 88.3 %2014: 88.9 %2015: 89.4 %2016: 90 %2017: 90.6 %2018: 91.2 %2019: 91.8 %2020: 92.4 %2021: 92.9 %2022: 93.5 %2023: 94.1 %2024: 94.7 %

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 at least basic drinking water sources in urban vs. rural areas in Lesotho stood at 94.7%. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.6% on the previous year and up 6.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, using at least basic drinking water sources in urban vs. rural areas in Lesotho peaked at 94.7% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 80.9%, in 2000.

That places Lesotho 138th out of 188 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 83.5% 80.9% 86.0% 10
2010s 89.2% 86.6% 91.8% 10
2020s 93.5% 92.4% 94.7% 5

Countries ranked near Lesotho

  1. 135 Tajikistan 94.9% compare
  2. 136 Bosnia and Herzegovina 94.9% compare
  3. 137 Algeria 94.8% compare
  4. 139 Oman 94.7% compare
  5. 140 Cambodia 94.1% compare
  6. 141 Zimbabwe 93.7% compare

See the full ranking of 188 places →

More environment data for Lesotho

All data for Lesotho →

Frequently asked questions

What is using at least basic drinking water sources in urban vs. rural areas in Lesotho?
Using at least basic drinking water sources in urban vs. rural areas in Lesotho was 94.7% 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 at least basic drinking water sources in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Lesotho?
The highest recorded value was 94.7% in 2024.
What is the lowest using at least basic drinking water sources in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Lesotho?
The lowest recorded value was 80.9% in 2000.
How does Lesotho rank for using at least basic drinking water sources in urban vs. rural areas?
Lesotho ranks 138th out of 188 countries with data for 2024.
Is using at least basic drinking water sources in urban vs. rural areas rising or falling in Lesotho?
Over the last ten years it is up 6.6%. 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 at least basic drinking water sources 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

Indicator
Using at least basic drinking water sources in urban vs. rural areas
Unit
%
Source
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
188 places, 4,631 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Proportion of people who use an improved drinking water source, which is either located on their premises, or at a collection point, which takes no more than 30 minutes for a roundtrip.