Namibia: Annual freshwater withdrawals, total (billion cubic meters)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2022, Namibia's annual freshwater withdrawals, total (billion cubic meters) did not change 0% on 2021 (from 0.1 to 0.1).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1992 to 2021), the average change was −2.8% and a typical year strayed about 3.9% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 12.9% in 1986 and the biggest yearly fall was 13.7% in 2021. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2013 to 2022 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.00919 a year. A straight line explains 99% 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.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 0.07 for 2025. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2020 to 2022 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 0.00326, against 0.02 for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

In 2022, Namibia had the 156th highest value of the 179 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.

Closest to Namibia in the 2022 ranking

• Liberia — 153rd of 179: 0.15
• Gabon — 154th of 179: 0.14
• Benin — 155th of 179: 0.13
• Gambia, The — 157th of 179: 0.1
• Belize — 158th of 179: 0.1
• Brunei Darussalam — 159th of 179: 0.09

What this measures

Annual freshwater withdrawals refer to total water withdrawals, not counting evaporation losses from storage basins. Withdrawals also include water from desalination plants in countries where they are a significant source. Withdrawals can exceed 100 percent of total renewable resources where extraction from nonrenewable aquifers or desalination plants is considerable or where there is significant water reuse. Withdrawals for agriculture and industry are total withdrawals for irrigation and livestock production and for direct industrial use (including withdrawals for cooling thermoelectric plants). Withdrawals for domestic uses include drinking water, municipal use or supply, and use for public services, commercial establishments, and homes.

Limitations: A common perception is that most of the available freshwater resources are visible (on the surfaces of lakes, reservoirs and rivers). However, this visible water represents only a tiny fraction of global freshwater resources, as most of it is stored in aquifers, with the largest stocks stored in solid form in the Antarctic and in Greenland's ice cap. The data on freshwater resources are based on estimates of runoff into rivers and recharge of groundwater. These estimates are based on different sources and refer to different years, so cross-country comparisons should be made with caution.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a sum.

All 38 values

Annual freshwater withdrawals, total (billion cubic meters) in nearby economies

• Angola — 0.71 (2022)
• Benin — 0.13 (2022)
• Botswana — 0.21 (2022)
• Burkina Faso — 0.82 (2022)
• Burundi — 0.28 (2022)
• Cabo Verde — 0.18 (2022)
• Cameroon — 1.09 (2022)
• Central African Republic — 0.07 (2022)
• Chad — 0.88 (2022)

More environment data for Namibia

• Population in largest city — 511,369 (2025)
• Population in the largest city (% of urban population) — 32.5% (2025)
• Rural population — 1.52 million (2025)
• Rural population (% of total population) — 49.13% (2025)
• Urban population — 1.57 million (2025)
• Urban population (% of total population) — 50.87% (2025)
• Aquaculture production (metric tons) — 340 (2024)
• Capture fisheries production (metric tons) — 381,230 (2024)
• Total fisheries production (metric tons) — 381,570 (2024)
• Rural population growth (annual %) — 1.12% (2025)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
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Questions people ask

What is Namibia's annual freshwater withdrawals, total (billion cubic meters)?

0.1 in 2022, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1985?

It is down 26.46% from 0.14 in 1985 (0.83% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 0.3 in 2000 and the lowest 0.1 in 2021.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator ER.H2O.FWTL.K3, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), uri: https://data.apps.fao.org/aquastat/, publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), date accessed: 20240529 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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