Cameroon's people using at least basic drinking water services, urban (% of urban population) was 81.56% in 2024, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 0.39 percentage points from 81.95% in 2014.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 81.56% | 2024 |
| Five years earlier | 81.65% | 2019 |
| Ten years earlier | 81.95% | 2014 |
| Highest | 82.66% | 2000 |
| Lowest | 81.39% | 2023 |
| Average since 2015 | 81.64% | 2015–2024 |
| First recorded | 82.66% | 2000 |
What the numbers say
In 2024, Cameroon's people using at least basic drinking water services, urban (% of urban population) rose 0.17 percentage points on 2023 (from 81.39% to 81.56%).
Across the 23 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2023), the average change was −0.06 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.01 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 32.8 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.17 percentage points in 2024 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.07 percentage points in 2023. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.05 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 85% of the movement over 10 observed years.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
In 2024, Cameroon had the 167th highest value of the 178 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Cameroon | 81.56% | 2024 |
| World | 96.43% | 2024 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 86.51% | 2024 |
| Lower middle income | 95.17% | 2024 |
Closest to Cameroon in the 2024 ranking
- Ethiopia — 163rd of 178: 83.48%
- Angola — 164th of 178: 81.73%
- Sierra Leone — 165th of 178: 81.71%
- Burkina Faso — 167th of 178: 81.49%
- Uganda — 168th of 178: 79.99%
- São Tomé and Principe — 169th of 178: 79.33%
What this measures
The percentage of people using at least basic water services. This indicator encompasses both people using basic water services as well as those using safely managed water services. Basic drinking water services is defined as drinking water from an improved source, provided collection time is not more than 30 minutes for a round trip. Improved water sources include piped water, boreholes or tubewells, protected dug wells, protected springs, and packaged or delivered water.
Limitations: National, regional and income group estimates are made when data are available for at least 50 percent of the population.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.
All 25 values
| Year | People using at least basic drinking water services, urban (% of urban population) |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 81.56 |
| 2023 | 81.39 |
| 2022 | 81.46 |
| 2021 | 81.52 |
| 2020 | 81.58 |
| 2019 | 81.65 |
| 2018 | 81.71 |
| 2017 | 81.77 |
| 2016 | 81.83 |
| 2015 | 81.89 |
People using at least basic drinking water services, urban (% of urban population) in nearby economies
- Angola — 81.73% (2024)
- Benin — 75.9% (2024)
- Botswana — 96.78% (2024)
- Burkina Faso — 81.49% (2024)
- Burundi — 91.22% (2024)
- Cabo Verde — 95.08% (2024)
- Central African Republic — 48.06% (2024)
- Chad
More health data for Cameroon
- Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 14.86% (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 15.25% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female — 6.09 million (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 40.66% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male — 6.19 million (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 41.58% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, total — 12.29 million (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 41.12% (2025)
- Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population) — 13.72% (2025)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Cameroon's people using at least basic drinking water services, urban (% of urban population)?
- 81.56% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 2000?
- It is down 1.09 percentage points from 82.66% in 2000. The highest value was 82.66% in 2000 and the lowest 81.39% in 2023.
- How does Cameroon rank?
- 167th highest of 178 economies with data for 2024.
- Is the latest change in people using at least basic drinking water services, urban (% of urban population) unusual for Cameroon?
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SH.H2O.BASW.UR.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene, World Health Organization (WHO), uri: washdata.org, publisher: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (washdata.org), date accessed: 2025-09-30, date published: 2025-08… Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.
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