Arable land — Area in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Arable land — Area was 223,442 1000 ha in 2024. ▲ Rising
Arable land — Area in Sub-Saharan Africa, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in 1000 ha.
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 223,442 1000 ha for arable land — area in 2024. That is the highest value across all 64 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.4% on the previous year and up 8.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, arable land — area in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 223,442 1000 ha in 2024 and was at its lowest, 120,405 1000 ha, in 1961.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa 7th out of 32 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Arable land — Area in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | 1000 ha | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 120,405 1000 ha | — |
| 1962 | 121,285 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 1963 | 123,176 1000 ha | +1.6% |
| 1964 | 124,054 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 1965 | 125,090 1000 ha | +0.8% |
| 1966 | 125,583 1000 ha | +0.4% |
| 1967 | 126,211 1000 ha | +0.5% |
| 1968 | 127,685 1000 ha | +1.2% |
| 1969 | 128,520 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 1970 | 128,777 1000 ha | +0.2% |
| 1971 | 129,911 1000 ha | +0.9% |
| 1972 | 130,716 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 1973 | 130,961 1000 ha | +0.2% |
| 1974 | 130,700 1000 ha | -0.2% |
| 1975 | 131,909 1000 ha | +0.9% |
| 1976 | 132,710 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 1977 | 133,100 1000 ha | +0.3% |
| 1978 | 134,615 1000 ha | +1.1% |
| 1979 | 135,099 1000 ha | +0.4% |
| 1980 | 135,656 1000 ha | +0.4% |
| 1981 | 135,746 1000 ha | +0.1% |
| 1982 | 136,528 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 1983 | 137,445 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 1984 | 138,116 1000 ha | +0.5% |
| 1985 | 140,700 1000 ha | +1.9% |
| 1986 | 141,554 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 1987 | 141,497 1000 ha | -0.0% |
| 1988 | 142,453 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 1989 | 143,671 1000 ha | +0.9% |
| 1990 | 145,499 1000 ha | +1.3% |
| 1991 | 148,172 1000 ha | +1.8% |
| 1992 | 151,010 1000 ha | +1.9% |
| 1993 | 152,652 1000 ha | +1.1% |
| 1994 | 154,514 1000 ha | +1.2% |
| 1995 | 158,518 1000 ha | +2.6% |
| 1996 | 160,335 1000 ha | +1.1% |
| 1997 | 161,327 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 1998 | 162,359 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 1999 | 165,213 1000 ha | +1.8% |
| 2000 | 166,089 1000 ha | +0.5% |
| 2001 | 167,529 1000 ha | +0.9% |
| 2002 | 168,858 1000 ha | +0.8% |
| 2003 | 172,795 1000 ha | +2.3% |
| 2004 | 175,747 1000 ha | +1.7% |
| 2005 | 177,978 1000 ha | +1.3% |
| 2006 | 179,239 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 181,349 1000 ha | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 184,514 1000 ha | +1.7% |
| 2009 | 187,058 1000 ha | +1.4% |
| 2010 | 194,211 1000 ha | +3.8% |
| 2011 | 195,821 1000 ha | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 200,504 1000 ha | +2.4% |
| 2013 | 203,463 1000 ha | +1.5% |
| 2014 | 206,450 1000 ha | +1.5% |
| 2015 | 209,437 1000 ha | +1.4% |
| 2016 | 211,886 1000 ha | +1.2% |
| 2017 | 215,254 1000 ha | +1.6% |
| 2018 | 217,473 1000 ha | +1.0% |
| 2019 | 215,867 1000 ha | -0.7% |
| 2020 | 217,146 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 219,294 1000 ha | +1.0% |
| 2022 | 221,068 1000 ha | +0.8% |
| 2023 | 222,566 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2024 | 223,442 1000 ha | +0.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 124,668 1000 ha | 120,405 1000 ha | 128,520 1000 ha | 9 |
| 1970s | 131,850 1000 ha | 128,777 1000 ha | 135,099 1000 ha | 10 |
| 1980s | 139,337 1000 ha | 135,656 1000 ha | 143,671 1000 ha | 10 |
| 1990s | 155,960 1000 ha | 145,499 1000 ha | 165,213 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2000s | 176,116 1000 ha | 166,089 1000 ha | 187,058 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2010s | 207,037 1000 ha | 194,211 1000 ha | 217,473 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2020s | 220,703 1000 ha | 217,146 1000 ha | 223,442 1000 ha | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
- 4 United States 151,553 1000 ha compare
- 5 Russian Federation 121,649 1000 ha compare
- 5 Russia 121,649 1000 ha compare
- 7 China 109,061 1000 ha compare
- 8 China, mainland 108,466 1000 ha compare
- 9 Brazil 55,642 1000 ha compare
- 10 Argentina 46,842 1000 ha compare
More environment data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -7.11 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -6.36 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.223 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.21 °C (2025)
- Nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF 305.43 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Aquaculture production 904,662 metric tons (2024)
- Nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) 2.29 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from Transport (Energy) 2.96 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Permanent meadows and pastures — Share in Agricultural land 72.81 % (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is arable land — area in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Arable land — area in Sub-Saharan Africa was 223,442 1000 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest arable land — area recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 223,442 1000 ha in 2024.
- What is the lowest arable land — area recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 120,405 1000 ha in 1961.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for arable land — area?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 7th out of 32 groups with data for 2024.
- Is arable land — area rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa 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.