Agricultural land use in Tanzania
Tanzania: Agricultural land use was 39.52 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
39.52 million hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
31st
of 227 countries
All-time high
39.52 million hectares
in 2020
All-time low
26.00 million hectares
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Agricultural land use in Tanzania, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
Tanzania recorded 39.52 million hectares for agricultural land use in 2023. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.
The figure is up 3.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural land use in Tanzania peaked at 39.52 million hectares in 2020 and was at its lowest, 26.00 million hectares, in 1961.
Tanzania ranks 31st 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 Tanzania, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 26.00 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 26.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 27.00 million hectares | +3.8% |
| 1964 | 27.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 27.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 27.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 27.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 27.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 27.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 28.00 million hectares | +3.7% |
| 1971 | 29.00 million hectares | +3.6% |
| 1972 | 29.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 29.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 29.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 29.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 29.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 29.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 30.00 million hectares | +3.4% |
| 1979 | 30.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 30.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 31.00 million hectares | +3.3% |
| 1982 | 31.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 31.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 31.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 32.00 million hectares | +3.2% |
| 1986 | 32.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 32.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 32.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 32.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 31.19 million hectares | -2.5% |
| 1991 | 31.56 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 1992 | 31.93 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 1993 | 32.31 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 1994 | 32.68 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 1995 | 33.05 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1996 | 33.42 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1997 | 33.70 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1998 | 33.80 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 1999 | 33.90 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2000 | 34.00 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2001 | 34.10 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 34.20 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 34.27 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 34.76 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 2005 | 35.31 million hectares | +1.6% |
| 2006 | 35.87 million hectares | +1.6% |
| 2007 | 36.42 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 2008 | 36.97 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 2009 | 37.19 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 37.40 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2011 | 37.61 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 37.50 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2013 | 38.04 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 2014 | 38.25 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2015 | 38.46 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2016 | 38.67 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 38.89 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 39.10 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 39.31 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2020 | 39.52 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2021 | 39.52 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 39.52 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 39.52 million hectares | +0.0% |
Tanzania compared with similar countries
- Tanzania's 39.52 million hectares is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 9.40 million hectares, 4.2× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Tanzania's 39.52 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 13.51 million hectares, 2.9× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 26.78 million hectares | 26.00 million hectares | 27.00 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 29.10 million hectares | 28.00 million hectares | 30.00 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 31.40 million hectares | 30.00 million hectares | 32.00 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 32.75 million hectares | 31.19 million hectares | 33.90 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 35.31 million hectares | 34.00 million hectares | 37.19 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 38.32 million hectares | 37.40 million hectares | 39.31 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 39.52 million hectares | 39.52 million hectares | 39.52 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Tanzania
More agriculture & rural data for Tanzania
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 11.77 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.2291 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 292.74 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.74 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0005 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.6312 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 22.9% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 22.9% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 2.5% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.1% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural land use in Tanzania?
- Agricultural land use in Tanzania was 39.52 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 Tanzania?
- The highest recorded value was 39.52 million hectares in 2020.
- What is the lowest agricultural land use recorded in Tanzania?
- The lowest recorded value was 26.00 million hectares in 1961.
- How does Tanzania rank for agricultural land use?
- Tanzania ranks 31st out of 227 countries with data for 2023.
- Is agricultural land use rising or falling in Tanzania?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Tanzania 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.