Haiti: People practicing open defecation (% of population)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, Haiti's people practicing open defecation (% of population) fell 0.2 percentage points on 2022 (from 17.73% to 17.53%).

Across the 22 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2022), the average change was −0.88 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.33 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.1 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

On record, the biggest yearly fall was 1.4 percentage points in 2001. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2014 to 2023 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.54 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 93% 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

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

Closest to Haiti in the 2023 ranking

• Djibouti — 2nd of 4: 15.88%
• Tajikistan — 3rd of 4: 0.46%
• Korea, Dem. People's Rep. — 4th of 4: 0%

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 24 values

People practicing open defecation (% of population) in nearby economies

• Antigua and Barbuda — 0.14% (2024)
• Aruba — 0.86% (2024)
• Bahamas, The — 0.13% (2019)
• Barbados — 0% (2024)
• Belize — 0.57% (2022)
• Bolivia — 7.09% (2024)
• Brazil — 0% (2024)
• British Virgin Islands — 0% (2016)
• Cayman Islands — 0% (2024)
• Chile

More health data for Haiti

• Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 10.08% (2025)
• Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 10.5% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female — 1.82 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 30.22% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male — 1.85 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 31.37% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, total — 3.67 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 30.79% (2025)
• Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population) — 10.1% (2025)
• Population ages 05-09, male (% of male population)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Haiti's people practicing open defecation (% of population)?

17.53% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2000?

It is down 19.53 percentage points from 37.07% in 2000. The highest value was 37.07% in 2000 and the lowest 17.53% in 2023.

Is the latest change in people practicing open defecation (% of population) unusual for Haiti?

In 2023, Haiti's people practicing open defecation (% of population) fell 0.2 percentage points on 2022 (from 17.73% to 17.53%). Across the 22 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2022), the average change was −0.88 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.33 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.1 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SH.STA.ODFC.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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