New WHO data reveals gaps in water services across healthcare facilities. From Ebola to maternity care, clean water in every health facility must become a political priority, says WaterAid. These findings are released as decision-makers meet for World Water Week 2026 in Stockholm.
New global estimates released today by WHO and JMP (18 August) show that 907 million people globally relied on healthcare facilities without water in 2025, while 936 million used facilities without sanitation and 652 million without hygiene services.
The new figures show the world is moving in the right direction, but progress remains uneven, leaving millions of patients and health workers exposed to preventable health risks every day. This includes in countries such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where Ebola outbreaks have exposed weaknesses in infection prevention and control.
While healthcare facilities are becoming safer globally, the data shows millions of people are still receiving care in settings without safe water, decent toilets, waste management or effective cleaning systems.
Global progress since 2015:
• Basic water services increased from 76% to 85%
• Basic hygiene services increased from 55% to 72%
• Basic waste management services increased from 59% to 71%
• India’s success story: India has made major gains since launching the Kayakalp programme in 2015 to improve cleanliness, infection prevention, waste management and quality of care across public healthcare facilities. The number of facilities meeting acceptable standards has risen from around 100 a decade ago to almost 52,000 last year.
Democratic Republic of the Congo:
• Nearly one in three healthcare facilities has no water service
• Around 70% have only a limited water supply
• 42% of rural healthcare facilities have no toilets
• Waste management services remain limited, undermining infection prevention efforts
Other key findings:
• Madagascar: 70% of healthcare facilities lack basic water services
• Nigeria: 45% of healthcare facilities lack basic water services
• Uganda: 95% of healthcare facilities do not have adequate toilets
• Pakistan: More than four in five healthcare facilities lack adequate toilets
• Nepal: 97% of healthcare facilities lack basic environmental cleaning systems
Head of health and hygiene at WaterAid, Helen Hamilton, said:
“No one should have to give birth, receive treatment for an infection or undergo surgery in a healthcare facility without access to clean water.
“These figures show that far too many families are still forced to seek care in unsafe healthcare facilities, or doctors and nurses expected to work without the basic tools needed to provide safe, dignified treatment.
“This failure to invest in clean water, sanitation and hygiene is costing lives. How can we hope to contain deadly disease outbreaks, such as Ebola in the DRC, when even the most fundamental standards of hygiene cannot be guaranteed?
“And how many more lives must be put at risk before we recognise that clean water and hygiene in healthcare are not optional, but essential for safe care and global health security?”
This data comes as from 23 to 27 August, researchers, policymakers and experts from around the world will gather in Stockholm for World Water Week, one of the world’s leading forums for issues related to water, sanitation and hygiene, from Ebola to El Niño.
At the conference in Stockholm, Anna Nilsdotter, Chief Executive of WaterAid Sweden said:
“At its heart, World Water Week is about people. That’s why it’s important that the voices of those living with the consequences of the water crisis every day are represented in these discussions.”
WaterAid will be represented at World Water Week by experts and delegates from countries including Bangladesh, Tanzania and Madagascar. This year’s theme, Water for People and Progress, focuses on how access to water and sanitation can contribute to health, equality and sustainable development.
During the week, WaterAid will take part in a range of seminars and meetings. The organisation’s representatives include participants from Bangladesh, Tanzania and Madagascar, countries that continue to face major challenges in access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene.
Head of health and hygiene at WaterAid, Helen Hamilton, added:
“Countries such as India have shown that with political commitment and investment, rapid progress is possible.
“The evidence is clear and the solutions are affordable. What is needed now is urgent political action to ensure that, by the end of this decade, every healthcare facility has clean water, decent toilets, safe waste management and the hygiene services needed to protect patients and health workers alike.”