Congo, Dem. Rep.'s people practicing open defecation, rural (% of rural population) was 18.85% in 2024, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is up 1.24 percentage points from 17.61% in 2014.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 18.85% | 2024 |
| Five years earlier | 18.64% | 2019 |
| Ten years earlier | 17.61% | 2014 |
| Highest | 18.85% | 2020 |
| Lowest | 14.72% | 2000 |
| Average since 2015 | 18.54% | 2015–2024 |
| First recorded | 14.72% | 2000 |
What the numbers say
In 2024, Congo, Dem. Rep.'s people practicing open defecation, rural (% of rural population) did not change 0 percentage points on 2023 (from 18.85% to 18.85%).
Across the 23 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2023), the average change was +0.18 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.07 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.5 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.21 percentage points in 2015. 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 upward, about 0.12 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 84% 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, Congo, Dem. Rep. had the 26th highest value of the 153 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 | |
|---|---|---|
| Congo, Dem. Rep. | 18.85% | 2024 |
| World | 9.2% | 2024 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 23.16% | 2024 |
| Low income | 23.96% | 2024 |
Closest to Congo, Dem. Rep. in the 2024 ranking
- Mozambique — 22nd of 153: 23.53%
- Ethiopia — 23rd of 153: 20.44%
- Lesotho — 24th of 153: 19.7%
- Zimbabwe — 26th of 153: 18.76%
- Marshall Islands — 27th of 153: 18.68%
- Papua New Guinea — 28th of 153: 17.3%
What this measures
People practicing open defecation refers to the percentage of the population defecating in the open, such as in fields, forest, bushes, open bodies of water, on beaches, in other open spaces or disposed of with solid waste.
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 practicing open defecation, rural (% of rural population) |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 18.85 |
| 2023 | 18.85 |
| 2022 | 18.85 |
| 2021 | 18.85 |
| 2020 | 18.85 |
| 2019 | 18.64 |
| 2018 | 18.43 |
| 2017 | 18.23 |
| 2016 | 18.02 |
| 2015 | 17.81 |
| 2014 |
People practicing open defecation, rural (% of rural population) in nearby economies
- Angola — 65.52% (2022)
- Benin — 65.15% (2024)
- Botswana — 16.65% (2024)
- Burkina Faso — 42.29% (2024)
- Burundi — 2.28% (2024)
- Cabo Verde — 10.12% (2024)
- Cameroon — 9.72% (2024)
- Central African Republic — 38.85% (2024)
- Chad
More health data for Congo, Dem. Rep.
- Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 17.76% (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 18.23% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female — 25.86 million (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 45.48% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male — 25.99 million (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 46.42% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, total — 51.85 million (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 45.95% (2025)
- Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population) — 15.08% (2025)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Congo, Dem. Rep.'s people practicing open defecation, rural (% of rural population)?
- 18.85% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 2000?
- It is up 4.13 percentage points from 14.72% in 2000. The highest value was 18.85% in 2020 and the lowest 14.72% in 2000.
- How does Congo, Dem. Rep. rank?
- 26th highest of 153 economies with data for 2024.
- Is the latest change in people practicing open defecation, rural (% of rural population) unusual for Congo, Dem. Rep.?
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SH.STA.ODFC.RU.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.
Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.
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