Agricultural land use in Libya
Libya: Agricultural land use was 15.35 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
15.35 million hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
57th
of 227 countries
All-time high
15.67 million hectares
in 1996
All-time low
11.17 million hectares
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Agricultural land use in Libya, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
The most recent figure for agricultural land use in Libya is 15.35 million hectares, measured in 2023.
The figure is down 0.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural land use in Libya peaked at 15.67 million hectares in 1996 and was at its lowest, 11.17 million hectares, in 1961.
Libya ranks 57th of 227 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
Agricultural land use in Libya, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 11.17 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 11.38 million hectares | +1.9% |
| 1963 | 11.59 million hectares | +1.8% |
| 1964 | 11.79 million hectares | +1.8% |
| 1965 | 11.99 million hectares | +1.7% |
| 1966 | 12.20 million hectares | +1.7% |
| 1967 | 12.40 million hectares | +1.7% |
| 1968 | 12.62 million hectares | +1.7% |
| 1969 | 12.82 million hectares | +1.6% |
| 1970 | 13.03 million hectares | +1.6% |
| 1971 | 13.23 million hectares | +1.6% |
| 1972 | 13.44 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 1973 | 13.64 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 1974 | 13.85 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 1975 | 14.05 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 1976 | 14.26 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 1977 | 14.46 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 1978 | 14.67 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 1979 | 14.88 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 1980 | 15.08 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 1981 | 15.19 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1982 | 15.29 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1983 | 15.40 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1984 | 15.41 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1985 | 15.43 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1986 | 15.44 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1987 | 15.44 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 15.44 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 15.45 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 15.46 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1991 | 15.46 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 15.46 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 15.46 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 15.47 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 15.52 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 1996 | 15.67 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 1997 | 15.67 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 15.45 million hectares | -1.4% |
| 1999 | 15.45 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 15.45 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 15.45 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 15.45 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 15.45 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 15.38 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 2005 | 15.38 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 15.38 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 15.38 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 15.38 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 15.38 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 15.35 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2011 | 15.35 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 15.36 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 15.36 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 15.35 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2015 | 15.35 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 15.35 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 15.35 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 15.35 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 15.35 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 15.35 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 15.35 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 15.35 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 15.35 million hectares | +0.0% |
Libya compared with similar countries
- Libya's 15.35 million hectares is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 3.20 million hectares, 4.8× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Libya's 15.35 million hectares is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 4.06 million hectares, 3.8× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 12.00 million hectares | 11.17 million hectares | 12.82 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 13.95 million hectares | 13.03 million hectares | 14.88 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 15.36 million hectares | 15.08 million hectares | 15.45 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 15.51 million hectares | 15.45 million hectares | 15.67 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 15.41 million hectares | 15.38 million hectares | 15.45 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 15.35 million hectares | 15.35 million hectares | 15.36 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 15.35 million hectares | 15.35 million hectares | 15.35 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Libya
More agriculture & rural data for Libya
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual -37.76 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.015 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 96.79 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.835 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.1209 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 1.5% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 1.5% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.0% (2019)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.4% (2019)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural land use in Libya?
- Agricultural land use in Libya was 15.35 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 agricultural land use recorded in Libya?
- The highest recorded value was 15.67 million hectares in 1996.
- What is the lowest agricultural land use recorded in Libya?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.17 million hectares in 1961.
- How does Libya rank for agricultural land use?
- Libya ranks 57th out of 227 countries with data for 2023.
- Is agricultural land use rising or falling in Libya?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Libya 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 Agricultural land use. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Land used for cultivation of crops and animal husbandry. The total of areas under cropland and permanent meadows and pastures.