Agricultural land (hectares) by country
Agricultural land refers to the share of land area that is arable, under permanent crops, and under permanent pastures. Arable land includes land defined by the FAO as land under temporary crops (double-cropped areas are counted once), temporary meadows for mowing or for pasture, land under market or kitchen...
What the numbers show
Agricultural land (hectares) is currently reported for 53 countries. The highest value is 136.25 million hectares in Sudan; the lowest is 3,000 hectares in Seychelles.
The median across all reporting countries is 11.77 million hectares, and the mean is 21.96 million hectares.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 45,415.
Over the past decade 40 countries rose and 12 fell. The largest increase was in Malawi (up 15.8%), and the largest decrease in Seychelles (down 25.0%).
Agricultural land: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sudan | 136.25 million hectares | 2011 | up 3.1% | rising |
| 2 | South Africa | 96.37 million hectares | 2011 | down 1.7% | flat |
| 3 | Nigeria | 76.20 million hectares | 2011 | up 6.0% | rising |
| 4 | Angola | 58.39 million hectares | 2011 | up 1.9% | flat |
| 5 | Chad | 49.93 million hectares | 2011 | up 2.0% | flat |
| 6 | Mozambique | 49.40 million hectares | 2011 | up 2.4% | rising |
| 7 | Somalia, Fed. Rep. | 44.13 million hectares | 2011 | up 0.1% | flat |
| 8 | Niger | 43.78 million hectares | 2011 | up 15.2% | rising |
| 9 | Mali | 41.62 million hectares | 2011 | up 5.8% | rising |
| 10 | Madagascar | 41.40 million hectares | 2011 | up 1.4% | rising |
| 11 | Algeria | 41.38 million hectares | 2011 | up 3.2% | falling |
| 12 | Mauritania | 39.71 million hectares | 2011 | down 0.0% | flat |
| 13 | Namibia | 38.81 million hectares | 2011 | down 0.0% | flat |
| 14 | Tanzania | 37.30 million hectares | 2011 | up 9.4% | rising |
| 15 | Ethiopia | 35.68 million hectares | 2011 | up 13.6% | falling |
| 16 | Morocco | 30.10 million hectares | 2011 | down 0.9% | rising |
| 17 | Kenya | 27.45 million hectares | 2011 | up 2.3% | rising |
| 18 | Botswana | 25.86 million hectares | 2011 | up 0.2% | flat |
| 19 | Congo, Dem. Rep. | 25.75 million hectares | 2011 | up 0.8% | flat |
| 20 | Zambia | 23.43 million hectares | 2011 | up 3.9% | rising |
| 21 | Cote d'Ivoire | 20.50 million hectares | 2011 | up 4.6% | rising |
| 22 | Zimbabwe | 16.32 million hectares | 2011 | up 7.1% | rising |
| 23 | Ghana | 15.90 million hectares | 2011 | up 9.6% | rising |
| 24 | Libya | 15.59 million hectares | 2011 | up 0.9% | rising |
| 25 | Guinea | 14.24 million hectares | 2011 | up 5.2% | flat |
| 26 | Uganda | 14.06 million hectares | 2011 | up 11.5% | rising |
| 27 | Burkina Faso | 11.77 million hectares | 2011 | up 10.4% | rising |
| 28 | Congo, Rep. | 10.56 million hectares | 2011 | up 0.2% | flat |
| 29 | Tunisia | 10.07 million hectares | 2011 | up 6.0% | rising |
| 30 | Cameroon | 9.60 million hectares | 2011 | up 4.8% | rising |
| 31 | Senegal | 9.51 million hectares | 2011 | up 7.9% | flat |
| 32 | Eritrea | 7.59 million hectares | 2011 | up 0.8% | flat |
| 33 | Malawi | 5.58 million hectares | 2011 | up 15.8% | rising |
| 34 | Gabon | 5.16 million hectares | 2011 | unchanged | flat |
| 35 | Central African Republic | 5.08 million hectares | 2011 | down 1.3% | rising |
| 36 | Togo | 3.72 million hectares | 2011 | up 6.9% | rising |
| 37 | Egypt, Arab Rep. | 3.67 million hectares | 2011 | up 9.8% | rising |
| 38 | Sierra Leone | 3.44 million hectares | 2011 | up 14.8% | rising |
| 39 | Benin | 3.43 million hectares | 2011 | up 5.1% | rising |
| 40 | Liberia | 2.63 million hectares | 2011 | up 1.5% | flat |
| 41 | Lesotho | 2.31 million hectares | 2011 | down 0.9% | falling |
| 42 | Burundi | 2.22 million hectares | 2011 | down 3.8% | rising |
| 43 | Rwanda | 1.92 million hectares | 2011 | up 9.8% | rising |
| 44 | Djibouti | 1.70 million hectares | 2011 | up 1.2% | rising |
| 45 | Guinea-Bissau | 1.63 million hectares | 2011 | up 0.1% | rising |
| 46 | Eswatini | 1.22 million hectares | 2011 | down 0.2% | falling |
| 47 | Gambia, The | 615,000 hectares | 2011 | up 9.8% | flat |
| 48 | Equatorial Guinea | 304,000 hectares | 2011 | down 9.0% | flat |
| 49 | Comoros | 155,000 hectares | 2011 | up 5.4% | rising |
| 50 | Mauritius | 89,000 hectares | 2011 | down 12.7% | falling |
| 51 | Cabo Verde | 75,000 hectares | 2011 | up 2.7% | rising |
| 52 | Sao Tome and Principe | 48,700 hectares | 2011 | down 4.5% | rising |
| 53 | Seychelles | 3,000 hectares | 2011 | down 25.0% | falling |
Regions and income groups
Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.
- Africa 1.16 billion hectares
- Sub-Saharan Africa 1.06 billion hectares
- Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) 1.06 billion hectares
- Sub-Saharan Africa excluding South Africa 964.77 million hectares
- Sub-Saharan Africa excluding South Africa and Nigeria 888.57 million hectares
- North Africa 102.51 million hectares
About this data
Agricultural land refers to the share of land area that is arable, under permanent crops, and under permanent pastures. Arable land includes land defined by the FAO as land under temporary crops (double-cropped areas are counted once), temporary meadows for mowing or for pasture, land under market or kitchen gardens, and land temporarily fallow. Land abandoned as a result of shifting cultivation is excluded. Land under permanent crops is land cultivated with crops that occupy the land for long periods and need not be replanted after each harvest, such as cocoa, coffee, and rubber. This category includes land under flowering shrubs, fruit trees, nut trees, and vines, but excludes land under trees grown for wood or timber. Permanent pasture is land used for five or more years for forage, including natural and cultivated crops.