Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in Eastern Africa
Eastern Africa: Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly was -5.98 Percentage change in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in Eastern Africa, 1950–2025
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
In 2025, historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in Eastern Africa stood at -5.98 Percentage change.
That represents a change of down 245.4% on the previous year and down 364.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in Eastern Africa peaked at 9.91 Percentage change in 1977 and was at its lowest, -7.75 Percentage change, in 1966.
That places Eastern Africa 42nd out of 72 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in Eastern Africa, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 8.86 Percentage change | — |
| 1951 | 1.02 Percentage change | -88.5% |
| 1952 | 3.42 Percentage change | +234.5% |
| 1953 | 8.86 Percentage change | +158.7% |
| 1954 | -0.9863 Percentage change | -111.1% |
| 1955 | 4.85 Percentage change | -591.9% |
| 1956 | 4.51 Percentage change | -7.1% |
| 1957 | 5.54 Percentage change | +22.8% |
| 1958 | 2.72 Percentage change | -50.9% |
| 1959 | 4.09 Percentage change | +50.6% |
| 1960 | 1.3 Percentage change | -68.1% |
| 1961 | 6.53 Percentage change | +401.4% |
| 1962 | 3.06 Percentage change | -53.1% |
| 1963 | 7.07 Percentage change | +130.8% |
| 1964 | -0.0265 Percentage change | -100.4% |
| 1965 | -6.79 Percentage change | +25559.9% |
| 1966 | -7.75 Percentage change | +14.2% |
| 1967 | 1.07 Percentage change | -113.8% |
| 1968 | 0.5278 Percentage change | -50.7% |
| 1969 | 1.23 Percentage change | +132.5% |
| 1970 | -2.29 Percentage change | -286.5% |
| 1971 | -0.6753 Percentage change | -70.5% |
| 1972 | 7.64 Percentage change | -1231.5% |
| 1973 | 0.2608 Percentage change | -96.6% |
| 1974 | 3.75 Percentage change | +1338.7% |
| 1975 | 1.97 Percentage change | -47.4% |
| 1976 | 1.72 Percentage change | -12.7% |
| 1977 | 9.91 Percentage change | +475.0% |
| 1978 | 7.3 Percentage change | -26.3% |
| 1979 | 4.72 Percentage change | -35.3% |
| 1980 | 2.06 Percentage change | -56.4% |
| 1981 | 4.97 Percentage change | +140.9% |
| 1982 | 4.68 Percentage change | -5.8% |
| 1983 | -1.86 Percentage change | -139.8% |
| 1984 | -0.2172 Percentage change | -88.3% |
| 1985 | 4.6 Percentage change | -2219.1% |
| 1986 | 6.49 Percentage change | +41.0% |
| 1987 | 0.4945 Percentage change | -92.4% |
| 1988 | -1.07 Percentage change | -315.7% |
| 1989 | 3.67 Percentage change | -444.4% |
| 1990 | 1.93 Percentage change | -47.5% |
| 1991 | -0.8773 Percentage change | -145.5% |
| 1992 | -3.18 Percentage change | +262.9% |
| 1993 | 1.35 Percentage change | -142.5% |
| 1994 | -1.43 Percentage change | -206.1% |
| 1995 | -2.5 Percentage change | +74.0% |
| 1996 | 0.8336 Percentage change | -133.4% |
| 1997 | 2.65 Percentage change | +217.6% |
| 1998 | -0.4816 Percentage change | -118.2% |
| 1999 | -2.33 Percentage change | +384.5% |
| 2000 | -2.22 Percentage change | -4.7% |
| 2001 | 0.2508 Percentage change | -111.3% |
| 2002 | -6.01 Percentage change | -2494.2% |
| 2003 | -0.8296 Percentage change | -86.2% |
| 2004 | -0.7526 Percentage change | -9.3% |
| 2005 | -1.61 Percentage change | +113.4% |
| 2006 | 1.28 Percentage change | -179.7% |
| 2007 | 0.5291 Percentage change | -58.7% |
| 2008 | -5.59 Percentage change | -1155.9% |
| 2009 | -4.13 Percentage change | -26.1% |
| 2010 | 1.36 Percentage change | -133.0% |
| 2011 | -2.28 Percentage change | -267.3% |
| 2012 | -2.05 Percentage change | -10.0% |
| 2013 | -2.67 Percentage change | +30.2% |
| 2014 | -2.89 Percentage change | +8.2% |
| 2015 | -1.29 Percentage change | -55.5% |
| 2016 | -3.99 Percentage change | +210.4% |
| 2017 | 2.24 Percentage change | -156.0% |
| 2018 | -0.0423 Percentage change | -101.9% |
| 2019 | -0.9979 Percentage change | +2260.5% |
| 2020 | 1.31 Percentage change | -231.7% |
| 2021 | -5 Percentage change | -480.5% |
| 2022 | -4 Percentage change | -20.0% |
| 2023 | -0.2895 Percentage change | -92.8% |
| 2024 | -1.73 Percentage change | +497.9% |
| 2025 | -5.98 Percentage change | +245.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 4.29 Percentage change | -0.9863 Percentage change | 8.86 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.6224 Percentage change | -7.75 Percentage change | 7.07 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1970s | 3.43 Percentage change | -2.29 Percentage change | 9.91 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.38 Percentage change | -1.86 Percentage change | 6.49 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1990s | -0.4046 Percentage change | -3.18 Percentage change | 2.65 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | -1.91 Percentage change | -6.01 Percentage change | 1.28 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | -1.26 Percentage change | -3.99 Percentage change | 2.24 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | -2.61 Percentage change | -5.98 Percentage change | 1.31 Percentage change | 6 |
Countries ranked near Eastern Africa
- 39 Taiwan, China 0.5363 Percentage change compare
- 40 Samoa 0.3183 Percentage change compare
- 41 Colombia 0.2774 Percentage change compare
- 42 Liechtenstein 0.1032 Percentage change compare
- 43 Angola -0.076 Percentage change compare
- 44 Luxembourg -0.1872 Percentage change compare
- 45 Montenegro -0.1974 Percentage change compare
More environment data for Eastern Africa
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -7.18 Percentage change (2025)
- Temperature change 1.28 °C (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.229 °C (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Other paper and paperboard, not elsewhere specified — Import value -0.3367 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total fibre furnish — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -5.69 Percentage change (2024)
- Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -5.99 Percentage change (2024)
- Other paper and paperboard, not elsewhere specified — Import -0.5287 % change on previous year (2024)
- Other paper and paperboard — Import value, annual growth rate 1.18 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in Eastern Africa?
- Historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in Eastern Africa was -5.98 Percentage change in 2025, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in Eastern Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 9.91 Percentage change in 1977.
- What is the lowest historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in Eastern Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was -7.75 Percentage change in 1966.
- How does Eastern Africa rank for historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly?
- Eastern Africa ranks 42nd out of 72 groups with data for 2025.
- Is historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in Eastern Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 364.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Eastern Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Historical 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 (0 to 7 cm) 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 1981-2024 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 based on the ERA5-Land reanalysis dataset. Contact: ENV.Stat@oecd.org