Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly was 55.57 Percentage change in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in United Arab Emirates, 1981–2024
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
In 2024, exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in United Arab Emirates stood at 55.57 Percentage change.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 938.5% on the previous year and up 322.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in United Arab Emirates peaked at 119.48 Percentage change in 1997 and was at its lowest, -81.27 Percentage change, in 2021.
United Arab Emirates ranks 1st of 193 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in United Arab Emirates, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | -55.42 Percentage change | — |
| 1982 | 92.79 Percentage change | -267.4% |
| 1983 | 96.03 Percentage change | +3.5% |
| 1984 | -55.49 Percentage change | -157.8% |
| 1985 | -58.89 Percentage change | +6.1% |
| 1986 | -10.28 Percentage change | -82.5% |
| 1987 | -25.11 Percentage change | +144.3% |
| 1988 | 77.58 Percentage change | -408.9% |
| 1989 | 36 Percentage change | -53.6% |
| 1990 | 50.96 Percentage change | +41.5% |
| 1991 | -28.34 Percentage change | -155.6% |
| 1992 | 83.46 Percentage change | -394.5% |
| 1993 | 50.2 Percentage change | -39.8% |
| 1994 | -66.34 Percentage change | -232.1% |
| 1995 | 54.1 Percentage change | -181.5% |
| 1996 | 71.74 Percentage change | +32.6% |
| 1997 | 119.48 Percentage change | +66.6% |
| 1998 | 4.81 Percentage change | -96.0% |
| 1999 | -45.04 Percentage change | -1037.1% |
| 2000 | -76.1 Percentage change | +68.9% |
| 2001 | -67.12 Percentage change | -11.8% |
| 2002 | -31.5 Percentage change | -53.1% |
| 2003 | -47.99 Percentage change | +52.3% |
| 2004 | -49.94 Percentage change | +4.1% |
| 2005 | -20.01 Percentage change | -59.9% |
| 2006 | 14.18 Percentage change | -170.9% |
| 2007 | -36.73 Percentage change | -359.1% |
| 2008 | -29.73 Percentage change | -19.1% |
| 2009 | -13.4 Percentage change | -54.9% |
| 2010 | -33.9 Percentage change | +152.9% |
| 2011 | -41.07 Percentage change | +21.1% |
| 2012 | -65.13 Percentage change | +58.6% |
| 2013 | 14.75 Percentage change | -122.6% |
| 2014 | -25.01 Percentage change | -269.6% |
| 2015 | -52 Percentage change | +107.9% |
| 2016 | -8.43 Percentage change | -83.8% |
| 2017 | -22.74 Percentage change | +169.7% |
| 2018 | -50.31 Percentage change | +121.3% |
| 2019 | -13.74 Percentage change | -72.7% |
| 2020 | 11.5 Percentage change | -183.8% |
| 2021 | -81.27 Percentage change | -806.4% |
| 2022 | -42.53 Percentage change | -47.7% |
| 2023 | -6.63 Percentage change | -84.4% |
| 2024 | 55.57 Percentage change | -938.5% |
United Arab Emirates compared with similar countries
- United Arab Emirates's 55.57 Percentage change is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.775 Percentage change, 71.7× the median. (65 countries reporting)
- United Arab Emirates's 55.57 Percentage change is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is -8.61 Percentage change. (22 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in United Arab Emirates changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | -1037.1% | 4.81 Percentage change | -45.04 Percentage change |
| 2024 | +938.5% | -6.63 Percentage change | 55.57 Percentage change |
| 2021 | -806.4% | 11.5 Percentage change | -81.27 Percentage change |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 10.8 Percentage change | -58.89 Percentage change | 96.03 Percentage change | 9 |
| 1990s | 29.5 Percentage change | -66.34 Percentage change | 119.48 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | -35.83 Percentage change | -76.1 Percentage change | 14.18 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | -29.76 Percentage change | -65.13 Percentage change | 14.75 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | -12.67 Percentage change | -81.27 Percentage change | 55.57 Percentage change | 5 |
Countries ranked near United Arab Emirates
More environment data for United Arab Emirates
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -80.98 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -85.4 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.331 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.5 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 3.87 % 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 1.89 % 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 exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in United Arab Emirates?
- Exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in United Arab Emirates was 55.57 Percentage change in 2024, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in United Arab Emirates?
- The highest recorded value was 119.48 Percentage change in 1997.
- What is the lowest exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in United Arab Emirates?
- The lowest recorded value was -81.27 Percentage change in 2021.
- How does United Arab Emirates rank for exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly?
- United Arab Emirates ranks 1st out of 193 countries with data for 2024.
- Is exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in United Arab Emirates?
- Over the last ten years it is up 322.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this United Arab Emirates data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 44 observations, free to reuse under OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required).
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