Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal: Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly was 12.37 Percentage change in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in KwaZulu-Natal, 1950–2025
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
KwaZulu-Natal recorded 12.37 Percentage change for historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in 2025.
That represents a change of up 152.9% on the previous year and up 187.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in KwaZulu-Natal peaked at 26.87 Percentage change in 1957 and was at its lowest, -42.61 Percentage change, in 1951.
That places KwaZulu-Natal 27th out of 2960 regions with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
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 KwaZulu-Natal, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 5.09 Percentage change | — |
| 1951 | -42.61 Percentage change | -937.3% |
| 1952 | -38.32 Percentage change | -10.1% |
| 1953 | -39.58 Percentage change | +3.3% |
| 1954 | -27.37 Percentage change | -30.9% |
| 1955 | 11.98 Percentage change | -143.8% |
| 1956 | -7.82 Percentage change | -165.3% |
| 1957 | 26.87 Percentage change | -443.6% |
| 1958 | -3.13 Percentage change | -111.6% |
| 1959 | 5.65 Percentage change | -280.5% |
| 1960 | -3 Percentage change | -153.1% |
| 1961 | 9.53 Percentage change | -417.7% |
| 1962 | 5.77 Percentage change | -39.5% |
| 1963 | 11.16 Percentage change | +93.6% |
| 1964 | -9.88 Percentage change | -188.5% |
| 1965 | -15.21 Percentage change | +53.9% |
| 1966 | -21.16 Percentage change | +39.1% |
| 1967 | 11.57 Percentage change | -154.7% |
| 1968 | -17.99 Percentage change | -255.5% |
| 1969 | -2.32 Percentage change | -87.1% |
| 1970 | -3.58 Percentage change | +54.7% |
| 1971 | -3.2 Percentage change | -10.7% |
| 1972 | -4.09 Percentage change | +27.8% |
| 1973 | -0.5691 Percentage change | -86.1% |
| 1974 | 25.12 Percentage change | -4513.6% |
| 1975 | 0.1326 Percentage change | -99.5% |
| 1976 | 22.07 Percentage change | +16543.1% |
| 1977 | 9.77 Percentage change | -55.7% |
| 1978 | 1.63 Percentage change | -83.3% |
| 1979 | -5.16 Percentage change | -417.2% |
| 1980 | -12.61 Percentage change | +144.3% |
| 1981 | 0.5819 Percentage change | -104.6% |
| 1982 | 0.1506 Percentage change | -74.1% |
| 1983 | -11.58 Percentage change | -7790.9% |
| 1984 | 5.75 Percentage change | -149.6% |
| 1985 | -6.36 Percentage change | -210.7% |
| 1986 | 2.94 Percentage change | -146.3% |
| 1987 | 7.33 Percentage change | +148.9% |
| 1988 | 16.84 Percentage change | +129.9% |
| 1989 | 17.58 Percentage change | +4.4% |
| 1990 | -2.59 Percentage change | -114.7% |
| 1991 | -4.47 Percentage change | +72.8% |
| 1992 | -15.89 Percentage change | +255.2% |
| 1993 | -9.56 Percentage change | -39.8% |
| 1994 | -2.63 Percentage change | -72.5% |
| 1995 | -7.56 Percentage change | +187.9% |
| 1996 | 11.19 Percentage change | -247.9% |
| 1997 | 21.46 Percentage change | +91.8% |
| 1998 | -1.62 Percentage change | -107.5% |
| 1999 | -8.51 Percentage change | +425.8% |
| 2000 | 12.24 Percentage change | -243.8% |
| 2001 | 23.31 Percentage change | +90.4% |
| 2002 | 4.96 Percentage change | -78.7% |
| 2003 | -20.1 Percentage change | -505.4% |
| 2004 | -9.47 Percentage change | -52.9% |
| 2005 | 5.15 Percentage change | -154.3% |
| 2006 | 9.79 Percentage change | +90.3% |
| 2007 | -3.96 Percentage change | -140.4% |
| 2008 | -19.88 Percentage change | +402.5% |
| 2009 | -4.41 Percentage change | -77.8% |
| 2010 | -10.68 Percentage change | +142.1% |
| 2011 | 7.38 Percentage change | -169.1% |
| 2012 | -11.26 Percentage change | -252.6% |
| 2013 | -17.5 Percentage change | +55.4% |
| 2014 | -15.59 Percentage change | -10.9% |
| 2015 | -14.07 Percentage change | -9.7% |
| 2016 | -21.35 Percentage change | +51.7% |
| 2017 | -23.34 Percentage change | +9.4% |
| 2018 | -12.68 Percentage change | -45.7% |
| 2019 | -27.4 Percentage change | +116.1% |
| 2020 | 1.75 Percentage change | -106.4% |
| 2021 | 11.76 Percentage change | +572.7% |
| 2022 | 6.1 Percentage change | -48.1% |
| 2023 | 0.3558 Percentage change | -94.2% |
| 2024 | -23.39 Percentage change | -6672.2% |
| 2025 | 12.37 Percentage change | -152.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | -10.92 Percentage change | -42.61 Percentage change | 26.87 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1960s | -3.15 Percentage change | -21.16 Percentage change | 11.57 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1970s | 4.21 Percentage change | -5.16 Percentage change | 25.12 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.06 Percentage change | -12.61 Percentage change | 17.58 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1990s | -2.02 Percentage change | -15.89 Percentage change | 21.46 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | -0.2373 Percentage change | -20.1 Percentage change | 23.31 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | -14.65 Percentage change | -27.4 Percentage change | 7.38 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.49 Percentage change | -23.39 Percentage change | 12.37 Percentage change | 6 |
Countries ranked near KwaZulu-Natal
- 24 Nepal 2.41 Percentage change compare
- 25 Papua New Guinea 2.24 Percentage change compare
- 26 Ireland 2.17 Percentage change compare
- 27 Suriname 1.91 Percentage change compare
- 28 New Zealand 1.69 Percentage change compare
- 29 Niger 1.65 Percentage change compare
- 30 Thailand 1.54 Percentage change compare
More environment data for KwaZulu-Natal
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 11.24 Percentage change (2025)
- Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -19.88 Percentage change (2024)
- Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -15.2 Percentage change (2024)
- River flooding exposure — Cropland share exposed to river flooding 0.5781 Percentage of agricultural land area (2022)
- Land cover and land cover change — Grassland 50,783 Square kilometres (2022)
- Land cover and land cover change — Loss of cropland 288.86 Square kilometres (2022)
- Land cover and land cover change — Gain of artificial surfaces 577.99 Square kilometres (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in KwaZulu-Natal?
- Historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in KwaZulu-Natal was 12.37 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 KwaZulu-Natal?
- The highest recorded value was 26.87 Percentage change in 1957.
- What is the lowest historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in KwaZulu-Natal?
- The lowest recorded value was -42.61 Percentage change in 1951.
- How does KwaZulu-Natal rank for historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly?
- KwaZulu-Natal ranks 27th out of 2960 regions with data for 2025.
- Is historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in KwaZulu-Natal?
- Over the last ten years it is up 187.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this KwaZulu-Natal 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