Arable land use per person in Malawi
Malawi: Arable land use per person was 0.1895 hectares per person in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
0.1895 hectares per person
Change on year
down 2.5%
World rank
64th
of 206 countries
All-time high
0.4169 hectares per person
in 1966
All-time low
0.1895 hectares per person
in 2023
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Arable land use per person in Malawi, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares per person.
Analysis
Malawi recorded 0.1895 hectares per person for arable land use per person in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.
That represents a change of down 2.5% on the previous year and down 13.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, arable land use per person in Malawi peaked at 0.4169 hectares per person in 1966 and was at its lowest, 0.1895 hectares per person, in 2023.
Malawi ranks 64th of 206 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Arable land use per person in Malawi, year by year
| Year | hectares per person | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 0.3499 hectares per person | — |
| 1962 | 0.3678 hectares per person | +5.1% |
| 1963 | 0.3717 hectares per person | +1.1% |
| 1964 | 0.3753 hectares per person | +0.9% |
| 1965 | 0.415 hectares per person | +10.6% |
| 1966 | 0.4169 hectares per person | +0.4% |
| 1967 | 0.3951 hectares per person | -5.2% |
| 1968 | 0.4081 hectares per person | +3.3% |
| 1969 | 0.4092 hectares per person | +0.3% |
| 1970 | 0.3884 hectares per person | -5.1% |
| 1971 | 0.4104 hectares per person | +5.7% |
| 1972 | 0.4103 hectares per person | -0.0% |
| 1973 | 0.4097 hectares per person | -0.2% |
| 1974 | 0.3987 hectares per person | -2.7% |
| 1975 | 0.3783 hectares per person | -5.1% |
| 1976 | 0.3674 hectares per person | -2.9% |
| 1977 | 0.3562 hectares per person | -3.1% |
| 1978 | 0.3528 hectares per person | -0.9% |
| 1979 | 0.34 hectares per person | -3.6% |
| 1980 | 0.3032 hectares per person | -10.8% |
| 1981 | 0.3069 hectares per person | +1.2% |
| 1982 | 0.3098 hectares per person | +0.9% |
| 1983 | 0.2836 hectares per person | -8.4% |
| 1984 | 0.2796 hectares per person | -1.4% |
| 1985 | 0.269 hectares per person | -3.8% |
| 1986 | 0.2719 hectares per person | +1.1% |
| 1987 | 0.2592 hectares per person | -4.7% |
| 1988 | 0.2456 hectares per person | -5.3% |
| 1989 | 0.2397 hectares per person | -2.4% |
| 1990 | 0.2357 hectares per person | -1.7% |
| 1991 | 0.2387 hectares per person | +1.3% |
| 1992 | 0.2269 hectares per person | -4.9% |
| 1993 | 0.2236 hectares per person | -1.4% |
| 1994 | 0.2066 hectares per person | -7.6% |
| 1995 | 0.2266 hectares per person | +9.7% |
| 1996 | 0.2318 hectares per person | +2.3% |
| 1997 | 0.232 hectares per person | +0.1% |
| 1998 | 0.2409 hectares per person | +3.9% |
| 1999 | 0.2444 hectares per person | +1.4% |
| 2000 | 0.243 hectares per person | -0.6% |
| 2001 | 0.2458 hectares per person | +1.2% |
| 2002 | 0.2399 hectares per person | -2.4% |
| 2003 | 0.2463 hectares per person | +2.7% |
| 2004 | 0.24 hectares per person | -2.6% |
| 2005 | 0.2492 hectares per person | +3.8% |
| 2006 | 0.25 hectares per person | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 0.2431 hectares per person | -2.8% |
| 2008 | 0.2468 hectares per person | +1.6% |
| 2009 | 0.2431 hectares per person | -1.5% |
| 2010 | 0.2361 hectares per person | -2.9% |
| 2011 | 0.2293 hectares per person | -2.9% |
| 2012 | 0.2228 hectares per person | -2.8% |
| 2013 | 0.2193 hectares per person | -1.5% |
| 2014 | 0.2166 hectares per person | -1.2% |
| 2015 | 0.214 hectares per person | -1.2% |
| 2016 | 0.2114 hectares per person | -1.2% |
| 2017 | 0.2088 hectares per person | -1.2% |
| 2018 | 0.2063 hectares per person | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 0.2038 hectares per person | -1.2% |
| 2020 | 0.2014 hectares per person | -1.2% |
| 2021 | 0.1995 hectares per person | -0.9% |
| 2022 | 0.1945 hectares per person | -2.5% |
| 2023 | 0.1895 hectares per person | -2.5% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 0.1895 hectares per person is above the median for low income countries, which is 0.1837 hectares per person, 1.0× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 0.1895 hectares per person is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.1581 hectares per person, 1.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.3899 hectares per person | 0.3499 hectares per person | 0.4169 hectares per person | 9 |
| 1970s | 0.3812 hectares per person | 0.34 hectares per person | 0.4104 hectares per person | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.2769 hectares per person | 0.2397 hectares per person | 0.3098 hectares per person | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.2307 hectares per person | 0.2066 hectares per person | 0.2444 hectares per person | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.2447 hectares per person | 0.2399 hectares per person | 0.25 hectares per person | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.2169 hectares per person | 0.2038 hectares per person | 0.2361 hectares per person | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.1962 hectares per person | 0.1895 hectares per person | 0.2014 hectares per person | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
- 61 Eritrea 0.1988 hectares per person compare
- 62 Tonga 0.1912 hectares per person compare
- 63 South Africa 0.1898 hectares per person compare
- 65 Afghanistan 0.1893 hectares per person compare
- 66 Sierra Leone 0.1872 hectares per person compare
- 67 Syria 0.1865 hectares per person compare
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)
- 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)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is arable land use per person in Malawi?
- Arable land use per person in Malawi was 0.1895 hectares per person in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest arable land use per person recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 0.4169 hectares per person in 1966.
- What is the lowest arable land use per person recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.1895 hectares per person in 2023.
- How does Malawi rank for arable land use per person?
- Malawi ranks 64th out of 206 countries with data for 2023.
- Is arable land use per person rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Arable land use per person. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Arable land is defined by the FAO as land under temporary crops, temporary meadows for mowing or for pasture, land under market or kitchen gardens, and land temporarily fallow. It is measured in hectares per person.