Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Western Sahara
Western Sahara: Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly was -62.29 Percentage change in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Western Sahara, 1950–2025
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
The most recent figure for historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Western Sahara is -62.29 Percentage change, measured in 2025.
The figure is up 0.3% on the previous year and down 163.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Western Sahara peaked at 172.77 Percentage change in 1950 and was at its lowest, -71.86 Percentage change, in 1964.
That places Western Sahara 189th out of 191 countries 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 Western Sahara, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 172.77 Percentage change | — |
| 1951 | 61.86 Percentage change | -64.2% |
| 1952 | 6.6 Percentage change | -89.3% |
| 1953 | 15.32 Percentage change | +132.0% |
| 1954 | 81.56 Percentage change | +432.3% |
| 1955 | 64.56 Percentage change | -20.8% |
| 1956 | 7.62 Percentage change | -88.2% |
| 1957 | 109.16 Percentage change | +1332.1% |
| 1958 | -29.15 Percentage change | -126.7% |
| 1959 | -48.01 Percentage change | +64.7% |
| 1960 | -61.36 Percentage change | +27.8% |
| 1961 | -52.36 Percentage change | -14.7% |
| 1962 | -11.91 Percentage change | -77.3% |
| 1963 | 64.09 Percentage change | -638.1% |
| 1964 | -71.86 Percentage change | -212.1% |
| 1965 | 19.39 Percentage change | -127.0% |
| 1966 | -61.83 Percentage change | -418.9% |
| 1967 | -32.04 Percentage change | -48.2% |
| 1968 | 29.96 Percentage change | -193.5% |
| 1969 | -1.01 Percentage change | -103.4% |
| 1970 | -1.17 Percentage change | +16.1% |
| 1971 | -6.7 Percentage change | +470.1% |
| 1972 | 31.51 Percentage change | -570.6% |
| 1973 | -41.13 Percentage change | -230.5% |
| 1974 | -48.25 Percentage change | +17.3% |
| 1975 | -46.37 Percentage change | -3.9% |
| 1976 | -22.54 Percentage change | -51.4% |
| 1977 | -64.25 Percentage change | +185.0% |
| 1978 | -19.49 Percentage change | -69.7% |
| 1979 | -26.9 Percentage change | +38.0% |
| 1980 | 109.11 Percentage change | -505.6% |
| 1981 | -31.38 Percentage change | -128.8% |
| 1982 | -54.09 Percentage change | +72.4% |
| 1983 | -55.41 Percentage change | +2.4% |
| 1984 | -59.66 Percentage change | +7.7% |
| 1985 | -54.66 Percentage change | -8.4% |
| 1986 | 2.64 Percentage change | -104.8% |
| 1987 | 103.93 Percentage change | +3839.6% |
| 1988 | 99.58 Percentage change | -4.2% |
| 1989 | -36.96 Percentage change | -137.1% |
| 1990 | 157.12 Percentage change | -525.1% |
| 1991 | -41.41 Percentage change | -126.4% |
| 1992 | -17.95 Percentage change | -56.6% |
| 1993 | 24.73 Percentage change | -237.7% |
| 1994 | -26.92 Percentage change | -208.9% |
| 1995 | 48.08 Percentage change | -278.6% |
| 1996 | -22.48 Percentage change | -146.8% |
| 1997 | -40.02 Percentage change | +78.0% |
| 1998 | 15.37 Percentage change | -138.4% |
| 1999 | -13.35 Percentage change | -186.9% |
| 2000 | 28.2 Percentage change | -311.3% |
| 2001 | -67.29 Percentage change | -338.6% |
| 2002 | 54.23 Percentage change | -180.6% |
| 2003 | -32.02 Percentage change | -159.1% |
| 2004 | -34.8 Percentage change | +8.7% |
| 2005 | 35.98 Percentage change | -203.4% |
| 2006 | 48.8 Percentage change | +35.6% |
| 2007 | 2.28 Percentage change | -95.3% |
| 2008 | -33.24 Percentage change | -1556.2% |
| 2009 | 3.68 Percentage change | -111.1% |
| 2010 | -2.95 Percentage change | -180.1% |
| 2011 | 22.75 Percentage change | -871.6% |
| 2012 | -11.41 Percentage change | -150.1% |
| 2013 | -51.24 Percentage change | +349.2% |
| 2014 | 72.95 Percentage change | -242.4% |
| 2015 | 98.38 Percentage change | +34.9% |
| 2016 | 52.35 Percentage change | -46.8% |
| 2017 | -30.95 Percentage change | -159.1% |
| 2018 | 3.72 Percentage change | -112.0% |
| 2019 | -35.08 Percentage change | -1043.4% |
| 2020 | -61.83 Percentage change | +76.2% |
| 2021 | -60.81 Percentage change | -1.6% |
| 2022 | -12.95 Percentage change | -78.7% |
| 2023 | -11.18 Percentage change | -13.7% |
| 2024 | -62.5 Percentage change | +459.1% |
| 2025 | -62.29 Percentage change | -0.3% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Western Sahara changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | +3839.6% | 2.64 Percentage change | 103.93 Percentage change |
| 2008 | -1556.2% | 2.28 Percentage change | -33.24 Percentage change |
| 1957 | +1332.1% | 7.62 Percentage change | 109.16 Percentage change |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 44.23 Percentage change | -48.01 Percentage change | 172.77 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1960s | -17.89 Percentage change | -71.86 Percentage change | 64.09 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1970s | -24.53 Percentage change | -64.25 Percentage change | 31.51 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.31 Percentage change | -59.66 Percentage change | 109.11 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1990s | 8.32 Percentage change | -41.41 Percentage change | 157.12 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.5804 Percentage change | -67.29 Percentage change | 54.23 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | 11.85 Percentage change | -51.24 Percentage change | 98.38 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | -45.26 Percentage change | -62.5 Percentage change | -11.18 Percentage change | 6 |
Countries ranked near Western Sahara
More environment data for Western Sahara
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -21.2 Percentage change (2025)
- Temperature change 1.89 °C (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.503 °C (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Permanent meadows and pastures — Share in Agricultural land 99.92 % (2024)
- Country area — Area 26,600 1000 ha (2024)
- Pesticides (total) — Export value 37.78 1000 USD (2024)
- Pesticides (total) — Import value 62.35 1000 USD (2024)
- Permanent meadows and pastures — Share in Land area 18.8 % (2024)
- Land area — Area 26,600 1000 ha (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Western Sahara?
- Historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Western Sahara was -62.29 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 Western Sahara?
- The highest recorded value was 172.77 Percentage change in 1950.
- What is the lowest historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in Western Sahara?
- The lowest recorded value was -71.86 Percentage change in 1964.
- How does Western Sahara rank for historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly?
- Western Sahara ranks 189th out of 191 countries with data for 2025.
- Is historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in Western Sahara?
- Over the last ten years it is down 163.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Western Sahara 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.
Download this data
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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