Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Middle Africa
Middle Africa: Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly was -9.38 Percentage change in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Middle Africa, 1950–2025
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
In 2025, historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Middle Africa stood at -9.38 Percentage change.
The figure is up 16.9% on the previous year and down 105.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Middle Africa peaked at 4.83 Percentage change in 1961 and was at its lowest, -30.29 Percentage change, in 1950.
That places Middle Africa 2818th out of 3112 regions with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Middle Africa, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | -30.29 Percentage change | — |
| 1951 | -20.98 Percentage change | -30.8% |
| 1952 | -15.54 Percentage change | -25.9% |
| 1953 | 0.6351 Percentage change | -104.1% |
| 1954 | -3.75 Percentage change | -690.1% |
| 1955 | -0.5059 Percentage change | -86.5% |
| 1956 | -1.17 Percentage change | +131.7% |
| 1957 | 2.43 Percentage change | -307.1% |
| 1958 | 0.4831 Percentage change | -80.1% |
| 1959 | -0.0623 Percentage change | -112.9% |
| 1960 | 0.4956 Percentage change | -895.8% |
| 1961 | 4.83 Percentage change | +874.5% |
| 1962 | 2.51 Percentage change | -48.0% |
| 1963 | 0.6647 Percentage change | -73.5% |
| 1964 | -4.88 Percentage change | -834.4% |
| 1965 | -7.98 Percentage change | +63.5% |
| 1966 | -8.23 Percentage change | +3.1% |
| 1967 | 2.89 Percentage change | -135.2% |
| 1968 | 1.33 Percentage change | -54.1% |
| 1969 | 3.91 Percentage change | +194.4% |
| 1970 | 2.91 Percentage change | -25.6% |
| 1971 | 0.7863 Percentage change | -72.9% |
| 1972 | 2.4 Percentage change | +204.8% |
| 1973 | 0.4799 Percentage change | -80.0% |
| 1974 | 1.96 Percentage change | +308.6% |
| 1975 | 3.02 Percentage change | +54.2% |
| 1976 | 3.4 Percentage change | +12.6% |
| 1977 | 1.98 Percentage change | -41.7% |
| 1978 | -0.3399 Percentage change | -117.1% |
| 1979 | 2.73 Percentage change | -904.5% |
| 1980 | 2.26 Percentage change | -17.4% |
| 1981 | 0.3147 Percentage change | -86.1% |
| 1982 | 3.74 Percentage change | +1087.5% |
| 1983 | -2.99 Percentage change | -179.9% |
| 1984 | 0.651 Percentage change | -121.8% |
| 1985 | 1.49 Percentage change | +129.6% |
| 1986 | 3.34 Percentage change | +123.4% |
| 1987 | 1.98 Percentage change | -40.6% |
| 1988 | 3 Percentage change | +51.6% |
| 1989 | -1.19 Percentage change | -139.6% |
| 1990 | 1.34 Percentage change | -212.3% |
| 1991 | 3.51 Percentage change | +163.0% |
| 1992 | 0.6265 Percentage change | -82.2% |
| 1993 | 2.57 Percentage change | +310.9% |
| 1994 | 3.49 Percentage change | +35.5% |
| 1995 | 2.01 Percentage change | -42.2% |
| 1996 | -0.726 Percentage change | -136.0% |
| 1997 | -1.6 Percentage change | +120.1% |
| 1998 | -0.2578 Percentage change | -83.9% |
| 1999 | 2.95 Percentage change | -1244.6% |
| 2000 | -2.03 Percentage change | -168.7% |
| 2001 | -0.8281 Percentage change | -59.2% |
| 2002 | -0.6311 Percentage change | -23.8% |
| 2003 | -1.1 Percentage change | +73.8% |
| 2004 | -2.03 Percentage change | +85.0% |
| 2005 | -2.65 Percentage change | +30.6% |
| 2006 | -1.45 Percentage change | -45.2% |
| 2007 | -3.2 Percentage change | +120.2% |
| 2008 | -4.74 Percentage change | +48.4% |
| 2009 | -2.87 Percentage change | -39.4% |
| 2010 | -2.74 Percentage change | -4.6% |
| 2011 | -2.43 Percentage change | -11.4% |
| 2012 | -3.21 Percentage change | +32.0% |
| 2013 | -5.1 Percentage change | +59.0% |
| 2014 | -2.61 Percentage change | -48.8% |
| 2015 | -4.57 Percentage change | +74.9% |
| 2016 | -5.09 Percentage change | +11.5% |
| 2017 | -3.42 Percentage change | -32.8% |
| 2018 | -2.05 Percentage change | -40.1% |
| 2019 | -1.96 Percentage change | -4.1% |
| 2020 | -5.55 Percentage change | +182.6% |
| 2021 | -8.2 Percentage change | +47.8% |
| 2022 | -8.12 Percentage change | -1.0% |
| 2023 | -6.72 Percentage change | -17.3% |
| 2024 | -11.28 Percentage change | +67.9% |
| 2025 | -9.38 Percentage change | -16.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | -6.88 Percentage change | -30.29 Percentage change | 2.43 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1960s | -0.4469 Percentage change | -8.23 Percentage change | 4.83 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1970s | 1.93 Percentage change | -0.3399 Percentage change | 3.4 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.26 Percentage change | -2.99 Percentage change | 3.74 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.39 Percentage change | -1.6 Percentage change | 3.51 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | -2.15 Percentage change | -4.74 Percentage change | -0.6311 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | -3.32 Percentage change | -5.1 Percentage change | -1.96 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | -8.21 Percentage change | -11.28 Percentage change | -5.55 Percentage change | 6 |
More environment data for Middle Africa
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -9.88 Percentage change (2025)
- Temperature change 1.13 °C (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.198 °C (2025)
- Industrial roundwood — Export quantity 1.37 million m3 (2024)
- Industrial roundwood, non-coniferous — Production 16.92 million m3 (2024)
- Industrial roundwood — Import value 1,530 1000 USD (2024)
- Industrial roundwood — Import quantity 3,754 m3 (2024)
- Industrial roundwood — Production 16.92 million m3 (2024)
- Wood fuel — Production 122.87 million m3 (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Middle Africa?
- Historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Middle Africa was -9.38 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 Middle Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 4.83 Percentage change in 1961.
- What is the lowest historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in Middle Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was -30.29 Percentage change in 1950.
- How does Middle Africa rank for historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly?
- Middle Africa ranks 2818th out of 3112 regions with data for 2025.
- Is historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in Middle Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 105.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Middle Africa 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