Total Water Use per capita by Country

This map shows total water withdrawal per capita by country. Water withdrawal is the quantity of water removed from available sources for use in any purpose. Water drawn-off is not necessarily entirely consumed and some portion may be returned for further use downstream.

World average total water withdrawal: ~506 m³/inhabitant/year ( 506,000 liters each person )

Calculation

[Total water withdrawal per capita] = [Total water withdrawal (summed by withdrawn for agricultural, industrial and municipal purposes)] / [Total population]

Note:

• It includes renewable freshwater resources as well as potential over-abstraction of renewable groundwater or withdrawal of fossil groundwater and eventual use of desalinated water or treated wastewater.
• It does not include other categories of water use, such as for cooling of power plants, mining, recreation, navigation, fisheries, etc., which are sectors that are characterized by a very low net consumption rate.