Share of primary schools with access to drinking water in Malawi
Malawi: Share of primary schools with access to drinking water was 95.3% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Share of primary schools with access to drinking water in Malawi, 2017–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of primary schools with access to drinking water in Malawi is 95.3%, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 5 years on record.
That represents a change of up 2.2% on the previous year and up 9.2% over ten years.
Malawi ranks 81st of 116 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
Share of primary schools with access to drinking water in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 87.3% | — |
| 2020 | 91.0% | +4.3% |
| 2021 | 90.0% | -1.1% |
| 2022 | 93.3% | +3.6% |
| 2023 | 95.3% | +2.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 87.3% | 87.3% | 87.3% | 1 |
| 2020s | 92.4% | 90.0% | 95.3% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More education data for Malawi
- Theoretical duration of pre-primary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (pre-primary to post-secondary non) 0.0494 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of lower secondary education (years), annual 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years), annual 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of secondary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), gaps filled 2,021 tertiary education (2022)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), annual growth 0.0497 % change on previous year (2014)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 87,834 (2024)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre-primary education 3 years (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of primary schools with access to drinking water in Malawi?
- Share of primary schools with access to drinking water in Malawi was 95.3% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of primary schools with access to drinking water recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 95.3% in 2023.
- What is the lowest share of primary schools with access to drinking water recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 87.3% in 2017.
- How does Malawi rank for share of primary schools with access to drinking water?
- Malawi ranks 81st out of 116 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of primary schools with access to drinking water rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of primary schools with access to drinking water. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Share of public primary schools with a drinking water facility or water delivery point that is designed to protect water from external contamination, particularly of fecal origin.