Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in Northern Africa
Northern Africa: Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly was -13.93 Percentage change in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in Northern Africa, 1950–2025
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
Northern Africa recorded -13.93 Percentage change for historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 50.0% on the previous year and down 296.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in Northern Africa peaked at 30.74 Percentage change in 1950 and was at its lowest, -21.61 Percentage change, in 1966.
Northern Africa ranks 68th of 72 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
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 Northern Africa, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 30.74 Percentage change | — |
| 1951 | 19.98 Percentage change | -35.0% |
| 1952 | 28.12 Percentage change | +40.7% |
| 1953 | 24.69 Percentage change | -12.2% |
| 1954 | 4.47 Percentage change | -81.9% |
| 1955 | 7.57 Percentage change | +69.2% |
| 1956 | 5.01 Percentage change | -33.8% |
| 1957 | 4.12 Percentage change | -17.8% |
| 1958 | 3.57 Percentage change | -13.4% |
| 1959 | -0.3268 Percentage change | -109.2% |
| 1960 | -4.65 Percentage change | +1322.6% |
| 1961 | 0.5561 Percentage change | -112.0% |
| 1962 | 0.6133 Percentage change | +10.3% |
| 1963 | -0.4939 Percentage change | -180.5% |
| 1964 | 7.23 Percentage change | -1563.1% |
| 1965 | -12.92 Percentage change | -278.8% |
| 1966 | -21.61 Percentage change | +67.3% |
| 1967 | -18.7 Percentage change | -13.5% |
| 1968 | -4.76 Percentage change | -74.5% |
| 1969 | 9.19 Percentage change | -293.0% |
| 1970 | 0.3948 Percentage change | -95.7% |
| 1971 | 10.01 Percentage change | +2435.6% |
| 1972 | 20.83 Percentage change | +108.1% |
| 1973 | 5.06 Percentage change | -75.7% |
| 1974 | 16.73 Percentage change | +230.2% |
| 1975 | 4.47 Percentage change | -73.3% |
| 1976 | 12.7 Percentage change | +184.2% |
| 1977 | 6.37 Percentage change | -49.8% |
| 1978 | 4.59 Percentage change | -27.9% |
| 1979 | 10.03 Percentage change | +118.4% |
| 1980 | 9.05 Percentage change | -9.8% |
| 1981 | 1.56 Percentage change | -82.7% |
| 1982 | 6.13 Percentage change | +292.0% |
| 1983 | -4.46 Percentage change | -172.7% |
| 1984 | -4.03 Percentage change | -9.7% |
| 1985 | 6.57 Percentage change | -263.1% |
| 1986 | 4.19 Percentage change | -36.2% |
| 1987 | 4.93 Percentage change | +17.5% |
| 1988 | -0.1798 Percentage change | -103.6% |
| 1989 | 0.4485 Percentage change | -349.5% |
| 1990 | -3.23 Percentage change | -819.1% |
| 1991 | 3.95 Percentage change | -222.4% |
| 1992 | -0.6972 Percentage change | -117.7% |
| 1993 | -0.3798 Percentage change | -45.5% |
| 1994 | 1.62 Percentage change | -527.2% |
| 1995 | -2.8 Percentage change | -272.6% |
| 1996 | 9.25 Percentage change | -430.4% |
| 1997 | -1.19 Percentage change | -112.9% |
| 1998 | 1.27 Percentage change | -207.0% |
| 1999 | 1.38 Percentage change | +8.1% |
| 2000 | -7.3 Percentage change | -630.1% |
| 2001 | -3.25 Percentage change | -55.5% |
| 2002 | -7.27 Percentage change | +124.0% |
| 2003 | 6.04 Percentage change | -183.1% |
| 2004 | 0.868 Percentage change | -85.6% |
| 2005 | 0.3997 Percentage change | -54.0% |
| 2006 | -3.09 Percentage change | -873.4% |
| 2007 | -1.49 Percentage change | -51.9% |
| 2008 | -3.03 Percentage change | +103.7% |
| 2009 | -2.47 Percentage change | -18.3% |
| 2010 | -3.76 Percentage change | +52.2% |
| 2011 | 1.74 Percentage change | -146.1% |
| 2012 | -0.5059 Percentage change | -129.1% |
| 2013 | -6.42 Percentage change | +1169.1% |
| 2014 | 0.5172 Percentage change | -108.1% |
| 2015 | -3.51 Percentage change | -779.1% |
| 2016 | -11.55 Percentage change | +229.0% |
| 2017 | -8.35 Percentage change | -27.7% |
| 2018 | 1.78 Percentage change | -121.3% |
| 2019 | -2.79 Percentage change | -256.2% |
| 2020 | -8.66 Percentage change | +211.1% |
| 2021 | -15.39 Percentage change | +77.6% |
| 2022 | -11.69 Percentage change | -24.1% |
| 2023 | -18.91 Percentage change | +61.8% |
| 2024 | -9.29 Percentage change | -50.9% |
| 2025 | -13.93 Percentage change | +50.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 12.8 Percentage change | -0.3268 Percentage change | 30.74 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1960s | -4.55 Percentage change | -21.61 Percentage change | 9.19 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1970s | 9.12 Percentage change | 0.3948 Percentage change | 20.83 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.42 Percentage change | -4.46 Percentage change | 9.05 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.9177 Percentage change | -3.23 Percentage change | 9.25 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | -2.06 Percentage change | -7.3 Percentage change | 6.04 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | -3.29 Percentage change | -11.55 Percentage change | 1.78 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | -12.98 Percentage change | -18.91 Percentage change | -8.66 Percentage change | 6 |
Countries ranked near Northern Africa
- 65 Bulgaria -1.52 Percentage change compare
- 66 Kosovo -1.78 Percentage change compare
- 67 Malaysia -1.9 Percentage change compare
- 68 Senegal -2.06 Percentage change compare
- 69 Sweden -2.12 Percentage change compare
- 70 United States -2.16 Percentage change compare
- 71 Bangladesh -2.3 Percentage change compare
More environment data for Northern Africa
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -20 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.281 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.61 °C (2025)
- Recovered paper — Production 701,000 t (2024)
- Total fibre furnish — Production 864,000 t (2024)
- Agricultural land — Share in Land area 27.72 % (2024)
- Nutrient potash K2O (total) — Use per area of cropland 4.57 kg/ha (2024)
- Nutrient potash K2O (total) — Use per capita 0.84 kg/cap (2024)
- Nutrient potash K2O (total) — Use per value of agricultural production 2.41 g/Int$ (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in Northern Africa?
- Historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in Northern Africa was -13.93 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 Northern Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 30.74 Percentage change in 1950.
- What is the lowest historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in Northern Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was -21.61 Percentage change in 1966.
- How does Northern Africa rank for historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly?
- Northern Africa ranks 68th out of 72 groups with data for 2025.
- Is historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in Northern Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 296.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Northern 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