Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in Africa
Africa: Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly was -7.55 Percentage change in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in Africa, 1981–2024
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
Africa recorded -7.55 Percentage change for exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 44 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 21.7% on the previous year and down 431.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in Africa peaked at 3.73 Percentage change in 1985 and was at its lowest, -7.55 Percentage change, in 2024.
Africa ranks 368th of 711 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 1.72 Percentage change | -2.74 Percentage change | 3.73 Percentage change | 9 |
| 1990s | 0.5988 Percentage change | -1.19 Percentage change | 2.11 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | -2.17 Percentage change | -3.26 Percentage change | -0.5449 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | -1.83 Percentage change | -4.57 Percentage change | 0.5334 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | -5.8 Percentage change | -7.55 Percentage change | -2.75 Percentage change | 5 |
More environment data for Africa
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -7.93 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -7.12 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Temperature change 1.32 °C (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.213 °C (2025)
- Primary wood and paper products (export/import) — Export value 5.54 million 1000 USD (2024)
- Roundwood, coniferous — Production 32.26 million m3 (2024)
- Roundwood — Export value 714,851 1000 USD (2024)
- Roundwood — Export quantity 3.78 million m3 (2024)
- Roundwood — Import value 182,147 1000 USD (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in Africa?
- Exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in Africa was -7.55 Percentage change in 2024, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 3.73 Percentage change in 1985.
- What is the lowest exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was -7.55 Percentage change in 2024.
- How does Africa rank for exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly?
- Africa ranks 368th out of 711 groups with data for 2024.
- Is exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 431.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
The dataset provides annual anomalies in land and cropland soil moisture content of the top soil layer compared to the reference period 1981-2010. Exposure indicators to drought have been prepared by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Please see the working paper for a more complete description of the methods. The datasets span the period 1981-2022 and is the result of the use of a variety of geospatial data sources, including the ERA5-Land averaged monthly data of volumetric soil moisture and ESA CCI land cover data. Average anomalies have been calculated for both land and cropland exposure to drought. The dataset has a global coverage on a national level; on the sub-national TL2 level (i.e. large subnational regions) results are reported for all OECD countries as well as for Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia and South Africa. A number of aggregates are included: Euro area, European Union, Advanced economies, Emerging market economies, G7, G20, OECD, OECD Europe, OECD Asia Oceania, OECD Americas and the LAC region. Data source(s): Copernicus Climate Change Initiative land cover data and Copernicus Climate Data Store monthly soil moisture data (ERA5). Contact: ENV.Stat@oecd.org Database documentation