Agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe: Agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals was 87.2% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in Zimbabwe, 1987–2022
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
The most recent figure for agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in Zimbabwe is 87.2%, measured in 2022. That is the highest value across all 36 years on record.
The figure is up 8.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in Zimbabwe peaked at 87.2% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 78.9%, in 2002.
Zimbabwe ranks 35th of 180 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.
Agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in Zimbabwe, year by year
| Year | % of total freshwater withdrawal | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 79.0% | — |
| 1988 | 79.0% | -0.0% |
| 1989 | 79.0% | -0.0% |
| 1990 | 79.0% | -0.0% |
| 1991 | 79.0% | -0.0% |
| 1992 | 78.9% | -0.0% |
| 1993 | 78.9% | -0.0% |
| 1994 | 78.9% | -0.0% |
| 1995 | 78.9% | -0.0% |
| 1996 | 78.9% | -0.0% |
| 1997 | 78.9% | -0.0% |
| 1998 | 78.9% | -0.0% |
| 1999 | 78.9% | -0.0% |
| 2000 | 78.9% | -0.0% |
| 2001 | 78.9% | -0.0% |
| 2002 | 78.9% | -0.0% |
| 2003 | 79.5% | +0.7% |
| 2004 | 80.1% | +0.7% |
| 2005 | 80.7% | +0.8% |
| 2006 | 81.4% | +0.8% |
| 2007 | 82.1% | +0.9% |
| 2008 | 81.7% | -0.4% |
| 2009 | 81.3% | -0.5% |
| 2010 | 81.0% | -0.5% |
| 2011 | 80.6% | -0.5% |
| 2012 | 80.2% | -0.5% |
| 2013 | 79.8% | -0.5% |
| 2014 | 79.4% | -0.5% |
| 2015 | 79.0% | -0.5% |
| 2016 | 80.0% | +1.2% |
| 2017 | 83.0% | +3.7% |
| 2018 | 80.6% | -2.8% |
| 2019 | 84.8% | +5.2% |
| 2020 | 87.2% | +2.8% |
| 2021 | 87.2% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 87.2% | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 79.0% | 79.0% | 79.0% | 3 |
| 1990s | 78.9% | 78.9% | 79.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 80.3% | 78.9% | 82.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 80.8% | 79.0% | 84.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 87.2% | 87.2% | 87.2% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Zimbabwe
More agriculture & rural data for Zimbabwe
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 34.41 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0947 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 286.19 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.8815 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.595 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 9.5% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 9.5% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.3% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in Zimbabwe?
- Agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals in Zimbabwe was 87.2% 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 Zimbabwe?
- The highest recorded value was 87.2% in 2020.
- What is the lowest agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals recorded in Zimbabwe?
- The lowest recorded value was 78.9% in 2002.
- How does Zimbabwe rank for agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals?
- Zimbabwe ranks 35th out of 180 countries with data for 2022.
- Is agricultural water as a share of total water withdrawals rising or falling in Zimbabwe?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Zimbabwe 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
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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.