Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Lesotho
Lesotho: Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly was 7.08 Percentage change in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Lesotho, 1950–2025
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
Lesotho recorded 7.08 Percentage change for historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 131.8% on the previous year and up 160.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Lesotho peaked at 17.33 Percentage change in 1974 and was at its lowest, -58.37 Percentage change, in 1951.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | -19.81 Percentage change | -58.37 Percentage change | 14.48 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1960s | -2.92 Percentage change | -25.02 Percentage change | 7.78 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1970s | 5.65 Percentage change | -1.65 Percentage change | 17.33 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.4919 Percentage change | -14.85 Percentage change | 15.78 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1990s | -1.82 Percentage change | -15.58 Percentage change | 14.21 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.75 Percentage change | -11.91 Percentage change | 14.76 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | -14.45 Percentage change | -33.83 Percentage change | 1.94 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | -0.4936 Percentage change | -22.23 Percentage change | 8.55 Percentage change | 6 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More environment data for Lesotho
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 7.72 Percentage change (2025)
- Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -18.9 Percentage change (2024)
- Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -26.87 Percentage change (2024)
- Land use hidden — Other areas 6,407 Square kilometres (2023)
- Land use hidden — Total area 30,360 Square kilometres (2023)
- Land use hidden — Cropland 3,607 Square kilometres (2023)
- Land use hidden — Permanent meadows and pastures 20,000 Square kilometres (2023)
- Land use hidden — Land area 30,360 Square kilometres (2023)
- Land use hidden — Naturally regenerating forest 258.5 Square kilometres (2023)
- Land use hidden — Planted Forest 86.7 Square kilometres (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Lesotho?
- Historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Lesotho was 7.08 Percentage change in 2025, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 17.33 Percentage change in 1974.
- What is the lowest historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was -58.37 Percentage change in 1951.
- How does Lesotho rank for historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly?
- Lesotho ranks 1st out of 16 groups with data for 2025.
- Is historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is up 160.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Lesotho data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Historical exposure to drought — Land 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