Land area equipped for irrigation — Share in Cropland in World
World: Land area equipped for irrigation — Share in Cropland was 22.34 % in 2024. ▲ Rising
Land area equipped for irrigation — Share in Cropland in World, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in %.
Analysis
World recorded 22.34 % for land area equipped for irrigation — share in cropland in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, land area equipped for irrigation — share in cropland in World peaked at 22.44 % in 2021 and was at its lowest, 12.03 %, in 1961.
That places World 8th out of 32 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Land area equipped for irrigation — Share in Cropland in World, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 12.03 % | — |
| 1962 | 12.19 % | +1.3% |
| 1963 | 12.28 % | +0.7% |
| 1964 | 12.42 % | +1.1% |
| 1965 | 12.53 % | +0.9% |
| 1966 | 12.75 % | +1.8% |
| 1967 | 12.92 % | +1.3% |
| 1968 | 13.07 % | +1.2% |
| 1969 | 13.18 % | +0.8% |
| 1970 | 13.4 % | +1.7% |
| 1971 | 13.67 % | +2.0% |
| 1972 | 13.87 % | +1.5% |
| 1973 | 14.19 % | +2.3% |
| 1974 | 14.38 % | +1.3% |
| 1975 | 14.61 % | +1.6% |
| 1976 | 14.83 % | +1.5% |
| 1977 | 15.01 % | +1.2% |
| 1978 | 15.19 % | +1.2% |
| 1979 | 15.35 % | +1.1% |
| 1980 | 15.55 % | +1.3% |
| 1981 | 15.89 % | +2.2% |
| 1982 | 16.07 % | +1.1% |
| 1983 | 16.22 % | +0.9% |
| 1984 | 16.27 % | +0.3% |
| 1985 | 16.37 % | +0.6% |
| 1986 | 16.58 % | +1.3% |
| 1987 | 16.75 % | +1.0% |
| 1988 | 16.94 % | +1.1% |
| 1989 | 17.15 % | +1.2% |
| 1990 | 17.38 % | +1.3% |
| 1991 | 17.52 % | +0.8% |
| 1992 | 17.77 % | +1.4% |
| 1993 | 17.91 % | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 18.13 % | +1.2% |
| 1995 | 18.35 % | +1.2% |
| 1996 | 18.63 % | +1.5% |
| 1997 | 18.76 % | +0.7% |
| 1998 | 18.95 % | +1.0% |
| 1999 | 19.1 % | +0.8% |
| 2000 | 19.35 % | +1.3% |
| 2001 | 19.65 % | +1.6% |
| 2002 | 20.04 % | +2.0% |
| 2003 | 20.15 % | +0.5% |
| 2004 | 20.07 % | -0.4% |
| 2005 | 19.96 % | -0.5% |
| 2006 | 19.93 % | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 20.82 % | +4.5% |
| 2008 | 20.92 % | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 21.03 % | +0.5% |
| 2010 | 21.17 % | +0.7% |
| 2011 | 21.23 % | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 21.38 % | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 21.53 % | +0.7% |
| 2014 | 21.59 % | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 21.64 % | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 21.7 % | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 21.8 % | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 21.86 % | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 22.2 % | +1.6% |
| 2020 | 22.4 % | +0.9% |
| 2021 | 22.44 % | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 22.39 % | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 22.35 % | -0.2% |
| 2024 | 22.34 % | -0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 12.6 % | 12.03 % | 13.18 % | 9 |
| 1970s | 14.45 % | 13.4 % | 15.35 % | 10 |
| 1980s | 16.38 % | 15.55 % | 17.15 % | 10 |
| 1990s | 18.25 % | 17.38 % | 19.1 % | 10 |
| 2000s | 20.19 % | 19.35 % | 21.03 % | 10 |
| 2010s | 21.61 % | 21.17 % | 22.2 % | 10 |
| 2020s | 22.38 % | 22.34 % | 22.44 % | 5 |
More environment data for World
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -3.5 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -2.99 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.208 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.88 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 4.53 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 1.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 0.2123 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is land area equipped for irrigation — share in cropland in World?
- Land area equipped for irrigation — share in cropland in World was 22.34 % in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest land area equipped for irrigation — share in cropland recorded in World?
- The highest recorded value was 22.44 % in 2021.
- What is the lowest land area equipped for irrigation — share in cropland recorded in World?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.03 % in 1961.
- How does World rank for land area equipped for irrigation — share in cropland?
- World ranks 8th out of 32 groups with data for 2024.
- Is land area equipped for irrigation — share in cropland rising or falling in World?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this World data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Land area equipped for irrigation — Share in Cropland. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).
About this data
The FAOSTAT Land Use domain contains data on twenty-one land use categories and twenty-three categories of irrigation and agricultural practices. Data are available yearly and by country, regional and global levels. The domain includes Land Use Indicators providing information on the percentage share of agricultural and forest land, and their sub-components, including irrigated areas and areas under organic agriculture, within a country land use matrix. Data are available at country, regional and global level, for the following elements: (in percentage) i) Share in Land area; ii) Share in Agricultural land, iii) Share in Cropland; and iv) Share in Forest land; (in ha/pc) v) Area per capita.