Land cover and land cover change — Loss of cropland in Middle East and North Africa
Middle East and North Africa: Land cover and land cover change — Loss of cropland was 15,015 Square kilometres in 2022. ▲ Rising
Land cover and land cover change — Loss of cropland in Middle East and North Africa, 2005–2022
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Square kilometres.
Analysis
Middle East and North Africa recorded 15,015 Square kilometres for land cover and land cover change — loss of cropland in 2022. That is the highest value across all 5 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 10.7% on the previous year and up 86.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, land cover and land cover change — loss of cropland in Middle East and North Africa peaked at 15,015 Square kilometres in 2022 and was at its lowest, 3,568 Square kilometres, in 2005.
Middle East and North Africa ranks 13th of 57 groups on this measure, in the top quarter.
Land cover and land cover change — Loss of cropland in Middle East and North Africa, year by year
| Year | Square kilometres | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 3,568 Square kilometres | — |
| 2010 | 8,066 Square kilometres | +126.1% |
| 2015 | 10,726 Square kilometres | +33.0% |
| 2020 | 13,560 Square kilometres | +26.4% |
| 2022 | 15,015 Square kilometres | +10.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3,568 Square kilometres | 3,568 Square kilometres | 3,568 Square kilometres | 1 |
| 2010s | 9,396 Square kilometres | 8,066 Square kilometres | 10,726 Square kilometres | 2 |
| 2020s | 14,287 Square kilometres | 13,560 Square kilometres | 15,015 Square kilometres | 2 |
Countries ranked near Middle East and North Africa
- 10 Ukraine 17,820 Square kilometres compare
- 11 Malaysia 14,209 Square kilometres compare
- 12 Japan 13,196 Square kilometres compare
- 12 Ethiopia 20,612 Square kilometres compare
- 13 Kazakhstan 12,517 Square kilometres compare
- 14 France 12,109 Square kilometres compare
- 15 Spain 11,583 Square kilometres compare
- 16 Mongolia 11,323 Square kilometres compare
More environment data for Middle East and North Africa
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -16.75 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -31.05 Percentage change (2025)
- Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -10.75 Percentage change (2024)
- Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -15.82 Percentage change (2024)
- River flooding exposure — Cropland share exposed to river flooding 8.83 Percentage of agricultural land area (2022)
- Land cover and land cover change — Grassland 5,293 Square kilometres (2022)
- Land cover and land cover change — Gain of artificial surfaces 15,827 Square kilometres (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is land cover and land cover change — loss of cropland in Middle East and North Africa?
- Land cover and land cover change — loss of cropland in Middle East and North Africa was 15,015 Square kilometres in 2022, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest land cover and land cover change — loss of cropland recorded in Middle East and North Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 15,015 Square kilometres in 2022.
- What is the lowest land cover and land cover change — loss of cropland recorded in Middle East and North Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 3,568 Square kilometres in 2005.
- How does Middle East and North Africa rank for land cover and land cover change — loss of cropland?
- Middle East and North Africa ranks 13th out of 57 groups with data for 2022.
- Is land cover and land cover change — loss of cropland rising or falling in Middle East and North Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 86.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Middle East and North Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Land cover and land cover change — Loss of cropland. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
The land cover dataset provides a global assessment of land cover and land cover change to monitor pressures on ecosystems and biodiversity. By using geospatial data with high spatio-temporal resolution, it develops a set of internationally comparable indicators with a long time series and a five-year interval from 2000 to 2022 for the Climate Change Initiative Land Cover dataset, and from 1975 to 2030 for the Global Human Settlement Layer dataset. Please see the working paper for a more complete description of the methods. The dataset has a global coverage on the national level, while 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. The following country aggregates are included: Euro area, European Union, Advanced economies, Emerging market economies, G7, G20, OECD, OECD Europe, OECD Asia Oceania, OECD Americas, the LAC region and the World. Data source(s): Climate Change Initiative land cover data and Global Human Settlement Layer built-up area data. Contact: ENV.Stat@oecd.org Database documentation