Agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in Kenya
Kenya: Agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals was 80.2% in 2022. ▬ Flat
Agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in Kenya, 1990–2022
Source: AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, FAO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of total freshwater withdrawal.
Analysis
Kenya recorded 80.2% for agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in 2022. That is the highest value across all 33 years on record.
That represents a change of up 35.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in Kenya peaked at 80.2% in 2016 and was at its lowest, 59.3%, in 2010.
That places Kenya 50th out of 180 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.
Agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in Kenya, year by year
| Year | % of total freshwater withdrawal | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 76.4% | — |
| 1991 | 75.5% | -1.2% |
| 1992 | 74.6% | -1.3% |
| 1993 | 73.6% | -1.3% |
| 1994 | 72.5% | -1.4% |
| 1995 | 71.4% | -1.5% |
| 1996 | 70.2% | -1.7% |
| 1997 | 69.0% | -1.8% |
| 1998 | 67.6% | -1.9% |
| 1999 | 66.2% | -2.1% |
| 2000 | 64.7% | -2.2% |
| 2001 | 69.3% | +7.0% |
| 2002 | 72.7% | +5.0% |
| 2003 | 75.4% | +3.7% |
| 2004 | 72.4% | -4.0% |
| 2005 | 69.7% | -3.8% |
| 2006 | 67.2% | -3.6% |
| 2007 | 64.9% | -3.3% |
| 2008 | 62.9% | -3.2% |
| 2009 | 61.0% | -3.0% |
| 2010 | 59.3% | -2.8% |
| 2011 | 59.3% | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 59.3% | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 59.3% | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 59.3% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 59.3% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 80.2% | +35.3% |
| 2017 | 80.2% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 80.2% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 80.2% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 80.2% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 80.2% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 80.2% | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 71.7% | 66.2% | 76.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 68.0% | 61.0% | 75.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 67.6% | 59.3% | 80.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 80.2% | 80.2% | 80.2% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
More agriculture & rural data for Kenya
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 16.52 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.2316 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 547.24 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.47 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.6779 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 23.2% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 23.2% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 12.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.0% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in Kenya?
- Agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in Kenya was 80.2% in 2022, according to AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, FAO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 80.2% in 2016.
- What is the lowest agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 59.3% in 2010.
- How does Kenya rank for agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals?
- Kenya ranks 50th out of 180 countries with data for 2022.
- Is agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is up 35.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Kenya data come from?
- The figures come from AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, FAO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Agricultural water withdrawals as a percentage of total water withdrawals (which is the sum of water used for agriculture, industry and domestic purposes). Agricultural water is defined as the annual quantity of self-supplied water withdrawn for irrigation, livestock and aquaculture purposes.