Land use in Sudan
Sudan: Land use was 21.21 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Land use in Sudan, 2012–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2023, land use in Sudan stood at 21.21 million hectares. That is the highest value across all 12 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 6.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, land use in Sudan peaked at 21.21 million hectares in 2018 and was at its lowest, 19.99 million hectares, in 2014.
That places Sudan 18th out of 224 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 12 years of available data.
Land use in Sudan, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 20.01 million hectares | — |
| 2013 | 20.00 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 19.99 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2015 | 20.30 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 20.60 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 2017 | 20.91 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 2018 | 21.21 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 2019 | 21.21 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 21.21 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 21.21 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 21.21 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 21.21 million hectares | +0.0% |
Sudan compared with similar countries
- Sudan's 21.21 million hectares is above the median for low income countries, which is 3.60 million hectares, 5.9× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Sudan's 21.21 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.21 million hectares, 6.6× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 20.53 million hectares | 19.99 million hectares | 21.21 million hectares | 8 |
| 2020s | 21.21 million hectares | 21.21 million hectares | 21.21 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Sudan
More environment data for Sudan
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -15.6 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -15.35 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.327 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.21 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.2472 % 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 -0.03 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is land use in Sudan?
- Land use in Sudan was 21.21 million hectares in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest land use recorded in Sudan?
- The highest recorded value was 21.21 million hectares in 2018.
- What is the lowest land use recorded in Sudan?
- The lowest recorded value was 19.99 million hectares in 2014.
- How does Sudan rank for land use?
- Sudan ranks 18th out of 224 countries with data for 2023.
- Is land use rising or falling in Sudan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sudan data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Land use. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).