Highlights
Egypt
Republic of the CongoTop 20 countries by water stress
Water Stress by Country — full ranking
Turkmenistan
United Arab Emirates
Saudi Arabia
Libya
Sudan
Qatar
Mauritania
Pakistan
Uzbekistan
Israel
Syria
Yemen
Azerbaijan
Jordan
Iraq
Oman
Tunisia
Algeria
Netherlands
Niger
Malta
Iran
Serbia
Cape Verde
Somalia
Moldova
Saint Kitts and Nevis
South Africa
South Korea
Armenia
India
Afghanistan
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Eswatini
North Macedonia
Zimbabwe
Kazakhstan
Lebanon
Morocco
Belgium
Bangladesh
Singapore
Dominican Republic
Cyprus
Turkey
Spain
Bulgaria
Thailand
Sri Lanka
Germany
Mauritius
Vietnam
Mexico
Eritrea
China
Kenya
Romania
Philippines
Japan
Italy
Cuba
Poland
Greece
Tajikistan
Portugal
United States
Kyrgyzstan
Maldives
Denmark
Saint Lucia
Timor-Leste
North Korea
El Salvador
Jamaica
Puerto Rico
France
Senegal
Haiti
Indonesia
Czechia
Dominica
Estonia
Botswana
Ukraine
Trinidad and Tobago
Ethiopia
Mali
Antigua and Barbuda
Malawi
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Grenada
Burkina Faso
Rwanda
Djibouti
Tanzania
Chad
United Kingdom
Austria
Nigeria
Uruguay
Nepal
Ghana
Luxembourg
Slovakia
Slovenia
Switzerland
Belarus
Chile
Madagascar
Laos
Ireland
Gambia
Myanmar
Costa Rica
Guatemala
Albania
Venezuela
Finland
Burundi
South Sudan
Australia
Ecuador
Georgia
Paraguay
Zambia
Lithuania
Togo
São Tomé and Príncipe
Cambodia
Croatia
Honduras
Namibia
Uganda
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Ivory Coast
Russia
Mozambique
Sweden
Mongolia
Canada
Benin
Brazil
Malaysia
Colombia
Guinea-Bissau
Brunei
Latvia
Panama
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Lesotho
Comoros
Nicaragua
Norway
Suriname
Guyana
Angola
Cameroon
Guinea
Fiji
Sierra Leone
Gabon
Equatorial Guinea
DR Congo
Liberia
Central African Republic"10-yr change" compares the latest value with the value about ten years earlier (difference in % of resources withdrawn). Years in orange are older than 2016: the country has not reported recently, so its position may be out of date.
Water stress by continent
| Continent | Countries | Most water-stressed | Least water-stressed | Median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asia | 47 |  Bahrain 3,877.5 |  Bhutan 0.4 | 33.3 |
| Europe | 38 |  Hungary 78.2 |  Iceland 0.2 | 9.2 |
| Africa | 53 | Egypt 7,750 | Republic of the Congo 0 | 5.6 |
| North America | 23 |  Barbados 87.5 |  Belize 0.7 | 10 |
| South America | 12 |  Argentina 12.9 |  Bolivia 0.1 | 1.8 |
| Oceania | 4 |  New Zealand 3 |  Papua New Guinea 0 | 1.3 |
Water Stress by Country: what the numbers say
The three most water-stressed countries are Egypt (7,750), Bahrain (3,877.5), Turkmenistan (1,868); the three least water-stressed are Republic of the Congo (0), Papua New Guinea (0), Central African Republic (0.1).
Across all 177 countries the median is 8.8 % of resources withdrawn and the simple (unweighted) average is 126.9; the spread from 0 to 7,750 shows how differently countries fare on this measure.
Over roughly the last decade the biggest increases were in Egypt (+520 pts), Saudi Arabia (+74.1 pts), Niger (+34 pts), while the largest decreases were in Bahrain (-870.9 pts), United Arab Emirates (-237.5 pts), Singapore (-126.8 pts).
By continent, the leaders are Bahrain in Asia (3,877.5), Hungary in Europe (78.2), Egypt in Africa (7,750), Barbados in North America (87.5), Argentina in South America (12.9), New Zealand in Oceania (3).
About this indicator
Annual freshwater withdrawals (for agriculture, industry and households) as a percentage of internal renewable resources. Values above 100% mean a country withdraws more than its internal renewable supply, relying on rivers from neighbours, fossil groundwater or desalination.
Source: World Bank Open Data (indicator ER.H2O.FWTL.ZS). Countries without a published value are not ranked. Each country's own page shows the full historical series and its rank on this and every other indicator.
Frequently asked questions
Which country ranks first for water stress?
Egypt ranks first with 7,750% of resources withdrawn (2022, World Bank Open Data), followed by Bahrain (3,877.5) and Turkmenistan (1,868).
Which country has the lowest water stress?
Republic of the Congo is last of the 177 countries with current data, at 0% of resources withdrawn; Papua New Guinea (0) and Central African Republic (0.1) are just above it.
What is the world median water stress?
The median across 177 countries is 8.8% of resources withdrawn: half of all countries are above that value and half below. The unweighted average is 126.9.
Where does the data come from and how current is it?
From World Bank Open Data, indicator code ER.H2O.FWTL.ZS. Each country shows its most recent available year (2021–2022); years older than 2016 are highlighted in orange because the country has not reported recently, and countries whose latest figure is older than 2010 are left out of the ranking altogether.
More rankings
Ranking generated 2026-10-19 from World Bank Open Data. Figures are the latest published values; live population figures are statistical extrapolations, not counts. More about our data.