Arable land — Area in Malawi
Malawi: Arable land — Area was 4,000 1000 ha in 2024. ▲ Rising
Arable land — Area in Malawi, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in 1000 ha.
Analysis
The most recent figure for arable land — area in Malawi is 4,000 1000 ha, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 64 years on record.
The figure is up 11.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, arable land — area in Malawi peaked at 4,000 1000 ha in 2021 and was at its lowest, 1,300 1000 ha, in 1961.
That places Malawi 75th out of 248 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Arable land — Area in Malawi, year by year
| Year | 1000 ha | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 1,300 1000 ha | — |
| 1962 | 1,400 1000 ha | +7.7% |
| 1963 | 1,450 1000 ha | +3.6% |
| 1964 | 1,500 1000 ha | +3.4% |
| 1965 | 1,700 1000 ha | +13.3% |
| 1966 | 1,750 1000 ha | +2.9% |
| 1967 | 1,700 1000 ha | -2.9% |
| 1968 | 1,800 1000 ha | +5.9% |
| 1969 | 1,850 1000 ha | +2.8% |
| 1970 | 1,800 1000 ha | -2.7% |
| 1971 | 1,950 1000 ha | +8.3% |
| 1972 | 2,000 1000 ha | +2.6% |
| 1973 | 2,050 1000 ha | +2.5% |
| 1974 | 2,050 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 2,000 1000 ha | -2.4% |
| 1976 | 2,000 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 2,000 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 2,050 1000 ha | +2.5% |
| 1979 | 2,050 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 1,900 1000 ha | -7.3% |
| 1981 | 2,000 1000 ha | +5.3% |
| 1982 | 2,100 1000 ha | +5.0% |
| 1983 | 2,000 1000 ha | -4.8% |
| 1984 | 2,050 1000 ha | +2.5% |
| 1985 | 2,050 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 2,150 1000 ha | +4.9% |
| 1987 | 2,150 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 2,150 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 2,200 1000 ha | +2.3% |
| 1990 | 2,250 1000 ha | +2.3% |
| 1991 | 2,350 1000 ha | +4.4% |
| 1992 | 2,300 1000 ha | -2.1% |
| 1993 | 2,300 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 2,100 1000 ha | -8.7% |
| 1995 | 2,300 1000 ha | +9.5% |
| 1996 | 2,400 1000 ha | +4.3% |
| 1997 | 2,450 1000 ha | +2.1% |
| 1998 | 2,600 1000 ha | +6.1% |
| 1999 | 2,700 1000 ha | +3.8% |
| 2000 | 2,750 1000 ha | +1.9% |
| 2001 | 2,850 1000 ha | +3.6% |
| 2002 | 2,850 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 3,000 1000 ha | +5.3% |
| 2004 | 3,000 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 3,200 1000 ha | +6.7% |
| 2006 | 3,300 1000 ha | +3.1% |
| 2007 | 3,300 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 3,450 1000 ha | +4.5% |
| 2009 | 3,500 1000 ha | +1.4% |
| 2010 | 3,500 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 3,500 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 3,500 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 3,545 1000 ha | +1.3% |
| 2014 | 3,601 1000 ha | +1.6% |
| 2015 | 3,656 1000 ha | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 3,712 1000 ha | +1.5% |
| 2017 | 3,767 1000 ha | +1.5% |
| 2018 | 3,823 1000 ha | +1.5% |
| 2019 | 3,878 1000 ha | +1.4% |
| 2020 | 3,934 1000 ha | +1.4% |
| 2021 | 4,000 1000 ha | +1.7% |
| 2022 | 4,000 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 4,000 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 4,000 1000 ha | +0.0% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 4,000 1000 ha is above the median for low income countries, which is 3,000 1000 ha, 1.3× the median. (23 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 4,000 1000 ha is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 2,650 1000 ha, 1.5× the median. (45 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1,606 1000 ha | 1,300 1000 ha | 1,850 1000 ha | 9 |
| 1970s | 1,995 1000 ha | 1,800 1000 ha | 2,050 1000 ha | 10 |
| 1980s | 2,075 1000 ha | 1,900 1000 ha | 2,200 1000 ha | 10 |
| 1990s | 2,375 1000 ha | 2,100 1000 ha | 2,700 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2000s | 3,120 1000 ha | 2,750 1000 ha | 3,500 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2010s | 3,648 1000 ha | 3,500 1000 ha | 3,878 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2020s | 3,987 1000 ha | 3,934 1000 ha | 4,000 1000 ha | 5 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More environment data for Malawi
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -0.9153 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -0.8098 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.254 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.07 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 3.65 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 5.3 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is arable land — area in Malawi?
- Arable land — area in Malawi was 4,000 1000 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest arable land — area recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 4,000 1000 ha in 2021.
- What is the lowest arable land — area recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 1,300 1000 ha in 1961.
- How does Malawi rank for arable land — area?
- Malawi ranks 75th out of 248 countries with data for 2024.
- Is arable land — area rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Arable land — Area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).
About this data
The FAOSTAT Land Use domain contains data on twenty-one land use categories and twenty-three categories of irrigation and agricultural practices. Data are available yearly and by country, regional and global levels. The domain includes Land Use Indicators providing information on the percentage share of agricultural and forest land, and their sub-components, including irrigated areas and areas under organic agriculture, within a country land use matrix. Data are available at country, regional and global level, for the following elements: (in percentage) i) Share in Land area; ii) Share in Agricultural land, iii) Share in Cropland; and iv) Share in Forest land; (in ha/pc) v) Area per capita.