Nutrient balance — Cropland nitrogen use efficiency in Africa

Africa: Nutrient balance — Cropland nitrogen use efficiency was 67.75 % in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
67.75 %
Change on year
down 3.3%
Rank
10th
of 29 groups
All-time high
82.26 %
in 1962
All-time low
57.57 %
in 1983
Years of data
63
1961–2023

Nutrient balance — Cropland nitrogen use efficiency in Africa, 1961–2023

020406080196119922023

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in %.

Analysis

Africa recorded 67.75 % for nutrient balance — cropland nitrogen use efficiency in 2023.

That represents a change of down 3.3% on the previous year and down 4.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, nutrient balance — cropland nitrogen use efficiency in Africa peaked at 82.26 % in 1962 and was at its lowest, 57.57 %, in 1983.

That places Africa 10th out of 29 groups with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.

Nutrient balance — Cropland nitrogen use efficiency in Africa, year by year

Annual values for Nutrient balance — Cropland nitrogen use efficiency in Africa, 1961 to 2023.
Year % Change
1961 78.26 % —
1962 82.26 % +5.1%
1963 80.13 % -2.6%
1964 76.32 % -4.7%
1965 74.25 % -2.7%
1966 72.17 % -2.8%
1967 78.26 % +8.4%
1968 74.73 % -4.5%
1969 76.53 % +2.4%
1970 74.04 % -3.3%
1971 72.68 % -1.8%
1972 68.8 % -5.3%
1973 66.3 % -3.6%
1974 72.27 % +9.0%
1975 67.93 % -6.0%
1976 67.39 % -0.8%
1977 63.95 % -5.1%
1978 64.54 % +0.9%
1979 61.44 % -4.8%
1980 59.1 % -3.8%
1981 59.6 % +0.8%
1982 58.7 % -1.5%
1983 57.57 % -1.9%
1984 57.71 % +0.2%
1985 63.19 % +9.5%
1986 62.52 % -1.1%
1987 61.99 % -0.8%
1988 64.51 % +4.1%
1989 65.49 % +1.5%
1990 63.72 % -2.7%
1991 69.33 % +8.8%
1992 63.25 % -8.8%
1993 62.96 % -0.5%
1994 68.46 % +8.7%
1995 63.86 % -6.7%
1996 71.09 % +11.3%
1997 65.48 % -7.9%
1998 67.61 % +3.3%
1999 67.96 % +0.5%
2000 65.81 % -3.2%
2001 67.41 % +2.4%
2002 66.12 % -1.9%
2003 70.58 % +6.8%
2004 67.94 % -3.7%
2005 70.19 % +3.3%
2006 72.28 % +3.0%
2007 69.86 % -3.3%
2008 71.37 % +2.2%
2009 70.24 % -1.6%
2010 68.74 % -2.1%
2011 69.51 % +1.1%
2012 71.85 % +3.4%
2013 70.57 % -1.8%
2014 71.21 % +0.9%
2015 71.21 % +0.0%
2016 67.96 % -4.6%
2017 66.95 % -1.5%
2018 69.37 % +3.6%
2019 68.48 % -1.3%
2020 66.7 % -2.6%
2021 67.62 % +1.4%
2022 70.03 % +3.6%
2023 67.75 % -3.3%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 76.99 % 72.17 % 82.26 % 9
1970s 67.93 % 61.44 % 74.04 % 10
1980s 61.04 % 57.57 % 65.49 % 10
1990s 66.37 % 62.96 % 71.09 % 10
2000s 69.18 % 65.81 % 72.28 % 10
2010s 69.58 % 66.95 % 71.85 % 10
2020s 68.02 % 66.7 % 70.03 % 4

Countries ranked near Africa

  1. 7 Samoa 164.39 % compare
  2. 8 Equatorial Guinea 141.58 % compare
  3. 8 Republic of Moldova 78.16 % compare
  4. 9 Tonga 135.24 % compare
  5. 9 United Republic of Tanzania 72.27 % compare
  6. 10 Democratic People's Republic of Korea 69.2 % compare
  7. 10 Mauritius 128.25 % compare
  8. 11 Bolivia (Plurinational State of) 66.86 % compare
  9. 11 Ghana 124.81 % compare
  10. 12 Lao People's Democratic Republic 66.07 % compare
  11. 12 Papua New Guinea 123.83 % compare
  12. 13 Dominican Republic 117.33 % compare

See the full ranking of 233 places →

More environment data for Africa

All data for Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is nutrient balance — cropland nitrogen use efficiency in Africa?
Nutrient balance — cropland nitrogen use efficiency in Africa was 67.75 % in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest nutrient balance — cropland nitrogen use efficiency recorded in Africa?
The highest recorded value was 82.26 % in 1962.
What is the lowest nutrient balance — cropland nitrogen use efficiency recorded in Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 57.57 % in 1983.
How does Africa rank for nutrient balance — cropland nitrogen use efficiency?
Africa ranks 10th out of 29 groups with data for 2023.
Is nutrient balance — cropland nitrogen use efficiency rising or falling in Africa?
Over the last ten years it is down 4.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Africa data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Nutrient balance — Cropland nitrogen use efficiency. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Nutrient balance — Cropland nitrogen use efficiency in Africa. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 27 September 2026, from https://environment.statizoid.com/stat/nutrient-balance-cropland-nitrogen-use-efficiency/africa/

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About this data

Indicator
Nutrient balance — Cropland nitrogen use efficiency
Unit
%
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
233 places, 13,500 data points, 1961–2023
Last refreshed

The Cropland Nutrient balance domain contains information on the flows of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium from mineral fertilizer, manure applied, atmospheric deposition, crop removal, and biological fixation over cropland and per unit area of cropland. The flows are aggregated to total inputs and total outputs, from which the overall nutrient balance and nutrient use efficiency on cropland are calculated. Statistics are disseminated in units of tonnes and in kg/ha, as appropriate. Nutrient use efficiency is expressed as a fraction (%).