What proportion of the population has access to safe drinking water?

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This map tells us the percentage of the population using “improved” drinking-water sources.

Data source: WHO / UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply and Sanitation

More information:

  • Improved drinking-water sources are those that protect the water source from outside contamination such as fecal matter.
  • Examples of improved drinking-water sources include: piped water into dwellings, public taps, tubewells, protected dug wells and springs, rainwater collection, and bottled water.
  • Examples of water sources that are not considered to be “improved” include: unprotected dug wells, unprotected springs, vendor-provided water, tanker trucks, surface water, or bottled water if the secondary source used by households for cooking or personal hygiene is not an improved drinking-water source.