Biological fixation — Cropland nitrogen in Africa
Africa: Biological fixation — Cropland nitrogen was 3.63 million t in 2023. ▲ Rising
Biological fixation — Cropland nitrogen in Africa, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in t.
Analysis
In 2023, biological fixation — cropland nitrogen in Africa stood at 3.63 million t. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.
The figure is up 4.7% on the previous year and up 38.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, biological fixation — cropland nitrogen in Africa peaked at 3.63 million t in 2023 and was at its lowest, 818,764 t, in 1961.
Africa ranks 9th of 29 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
Biological fixation — Cropland nitrogen in Africa, year by year
| Year | t | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 818,764 t | — |
| 1962 | 889,009 t | +8.6% |
| 1963 | 945,470 t | +6.4% |
| 1964 | 939,953 t | -0.6% |
| 1965 | 980,484 t | +4.3% |
| 1966 | 972,460 t | -0.8% |
| 1967 | 993,351 t | +2.1% |
| 1968 | 1.01 million t | +1.4% |
| 1969 | 1.00 million t | -0.5% |
| 1970 | 1.02 million t | +1.5% |
| 1971 | 1.06 million t | +4.1% |
| 1972 | 1.08 million t | +2.3% |
| 1973 | 1.03 million t | -4.7% |
| 1974 | 1.16 million t | +11.8% |
| 1975 | 1.09 million t | -6.0% |
| 1976 | 1.04 million t | -4.0% |
| 1977 | 1.02 million t | -1.6% |
| 1978 | 1.04 million t | +1.5% |
| 1979 | 994,583 t | -4.4% |
| 1980 | 998,612 t | +0.4% |
| 1981 | 1.03 million t | +3.0% |
| 1982 | 1.02 million t | -1.4% |
| 1983 | 996,267 t | -1.8% |
| 1984 | 952,540 t | -4.4% |
| 1985 | 953,256 t | +0.1% |
| 1986 | 1.04 million t | +9.0% |
| 1987 | 1.05 million t | +1.0% |
| 1988 | 1.11 million t | +6.1% |
| 1989 | 1.15 million t | +3.2% |
| 1990 | 1.13 million t | -1.6% |
| 1991 | 1.20 million t | +6.3% |
| 1992 | 1.18 million t | -1.9% |
| 1993 | 1.18 million t | +0.2% |
| 1994 | 1.28 million t | +8.2% |
| 1995 | 1.32 million t | +3.6% |
| 1996 | 1.38 million t | +3.9% |
| 1997 | 1.43 million t | +3.6% |
| 1998 | 1.47 million t | +3.1% |
| 1999 | 1.51 million t | +2.5% |
| 2000 | 1.53 million t | +1.6% |
| 2001 | 1.60 million t | +4.9% |
| 2002 | 1.68 million t | +4.5% |
| 2003 | 1.67 million t | -0.7% |
| 2004 | 1.69 million t | +1.5% |
| 2005 | 1.75 million t | +3.6% |
| 2006 | 1.82 million t | +4.0% |
| 2007 | 1.82 million t | -0.0% |
| 2008 | 1.92 million t | +5.6% |
| 2009 | 2.04 million t | +5.8% |
| 2010 | 2.29 million t | +12.5% |
| 2011 | 2.30 million t | +0.5% |
| 2012 | 2.52 million t | +9.4% |
| 2013 | 2.63 million t | +4.3% |
| 2014 | 2.75 million t | +4.5% |
| 2015 | 2.76 million t | +0.4% |
| 2016 | 2.85 million t | +3.4% |
| 2017 | 3.04 million t | +6.7% |
| 2018 | 3.20 million t | +5.1% |
| 2019 | 3.14 million t | -1.8% |
| 2020 | 3.31 million t | +5.4% |
| 2021 | 3.41 million t | +3.1% |
| 2022 | 3.47 million t | +1.6% |
| 2023 | 3.63 million t | +4.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 949,958 t | 818,764 t | 1.01 million t | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.05 million t | 994,583 t | 1.16 million t | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.03 million t | 952,540 t | 1.15 million t | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.31 million t | 1.13 million t | 1.51 million t | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.75 million t | 1.53 million t | 2.04 million t | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.75 million t | 2.29 million t | 3.20 million t | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.46 million t | 3.31 million t | 3.63 million t | 4 |
Countries ranked near Africa
- 6 Canada 749,936 t compare
- 6 United Republic of Tanzania 208,282 t compare
- 7 Democratic Republic of the Congo 118,328 t compare
- 7 Russian Federation 690,363 t compare
- 8 Paraguay 682,008 t compare
- 8 Türkiye 107,568 t compare
- 9 Nigeria 604,775 t compare
- 10 Iran (Islamic Republic of) 70,728 t compare
- 10 Myanmar 533,961 t compare
- 11 Democratic People's Republic of Korea 43,666 t compare
- 11 USSR 466,300 t compare
- 12 Lao People's Democratic Republic 25,926 t compare
- 12 Australia and New Zealand 375,046 t compare
More environment data for Africa
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -7.12 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -7.93 Percentage change (2025)
- Temperature change 1.32 °C (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.213 °C (2025)
- Other industrial roundwood, non-coniferous (production) — Production 26.92 million m3 (2024)
- Primary wood and paper products (export/import) — Import value 11.21 million 1000 USD (2024)
- Industrial roundwood, non-coniferous — Production 66.41 million m3 (2024)
- Sawlogs and veneer logs — Production 39.12 million m3 (2024)
- Sawlogs and veneer logs, coniferous — Production 9.31 million m3 (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is biological fixation — cropland nitrogen in Africa?
- Biological fixation — cropland nitrogen in Africa was 3.63 million t in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest biological fixation — cropland nitrogen recorded in Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 3.63 million t in 2023.
- What is the lowest biological fixation — cropland nitrogen recorded in Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 818,764 t in 1961.
- How does Africa rank for biological fixation — cropland nitrogen?
- Africa ranks 9th out of 29 groups with data for 2023.
- Is biological fixation — cropland nitrogen rising or falling in Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 38.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Biological fixation — Cropland nitrogen. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).
About this data
The Cropland Nutrient balance domain contains information on the flows of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium from mineral fertilizer, manure applied, atmospheric deposition, crop removal, and biological fixation over cropland and per unit area of cropland. The flows are aggregated to total inputs and total outputs, from which the overall nutrient balance and nutrient use efficiency on cropland are calculated. Statistics are disseminated in units of tonnes and in kg/ha, as appropriate. Nutrient use efficiency is expressed as a fraction (%).