Handwashing facilities — all countries

Handwashing facilities — South Asia

Handwashing facilities in South Asia in 2024 — 87.4%. Since 2007, the indicator has risen by 48.9 pp.

2024 87.4% +0.4 pp vs 2023
World rank
Period maximum 87.4%2024
Period minimum 38.5%2007

Trend over time

2007–2024 · % of population

Handwashing facilities — South Asia, 2007–20242040608010020072009201120132015201720192021202320242007: 38.5%2008: 38.7%2009: 39%2010: 50.9%2011: 51.4%2012: 51.9%2013: 52.9%2014: 53.4%2015: 57.2%2016: 61%2017: 64.8%2018: 68.5%2019: 72.3%2020: 76%2021: 79.7%2022: 83.4%2023: 87%2024: 87.4%
Change over the period: +48.9 pp Annual average: 2.88 pp

Comparison, 2024

How the value compares with the world and the groups this territory belongs to: South Asia

South Asia 87.4%
World 78%
Handwashing facilities — South Asia, by year South Asia All countries CSV XLSX
Year % Change, pp
2024 87.4 +0.4 pp
2023 87 +3.7 pp
2022 83.4 +3.7 pp
2021 79.7 +3.7 pp
2020 76 +3.7 pp
2019 72.3 +3.7 pp
2018 68.5 +3.8 pp
2017 64.8 +3.8 pp
2016 61 +3.8 pp
2015 57.2 +3.8 pp
2014 53.4 +0.5 pp
2013 52.9 +1 pp
2012 51.9 +0.5 pp
2011 51.4 +0.5 pp
2010 50.9 +12 pp
2009 39 +0.2 pp
2008 38.7 +0.2 pp
2007 38.5

About the indicator

The share of the population that has an equipped place for washing hands with water and soap in the dwelling. The indicator looks a small one next to piped water and sewerage, but in its contribution to reducing diarrheal and respiratory disease it is comparable to them, and it costs incomparably less. The COVID-19 pandemic made it visible: it turned out that in the poorest countries of Africa fewer than a quarter of the population have facilities for washing hands.

Important: Not all countries are surveyed: where practically everyone has such facilities, these data are not collected. That is why the aggregate by country group is computed only where coverage is sufficient — averaging the surveyed countries alone would give a picture noticeably worse than the reality.

Source: Global Health Observatory (WHO), license CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO.