Agricultural water withdrawals in Kenya
Kenya: Agricultural water withdrawals was 4.31 billion cubic meters in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
4.31 billion cubic meters
Change on year
up 7.4%
World rank
55th
of 180 countries
All-time high
4.31 billion cubic meters
in 2023
All-time low
1.01 billion cubic meters
in 2000
Years of data
34
1990–2023
Agricultural water withdrawals in Kenya, 1990–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations - AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in cubic meters.
Analysis
In 2023, agricultural water withdrawals in Kenya stood at 4.31 billion cubic meters. That is the highest value across all 34 years on record.
The figure is up 7.4% on the previous year and up 125.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural water withdrawals in Kenya peaked at 4.31 billion cubic meters in 2023 and was at its lowest, 1.01 billion cubic meters, in 2000.
Kenya ranks 55th of 180 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Agricultural water withdrawals in Kenya, year by year
| Year | cubic meters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 1.57 billion cubic meters | — |
| 1991 | 1.51 billion cubic meters | -3.6% |
| 1992 | 1.45 billion cubic meters | -3.7% |
| 1993 | 1.40 billion cubic meters | -3.8% |
| 1994 | 1.34 billion cubic meters | -4.0% |
| 1995 | 1.29 billion cubic meters | -4.1% |
| 1996 | 1.23 billion cubic meters | -4.3% |
| 1997 | 1.18 billion cubic meters | -4.5% |
| 1998 | 1.12 billion cubic meters | -4.7% |
| 1999 | 1.07 billion cubic meters | -5.0% |
| 2000 | 1.01 billion cubic meters | -5.2% |
| 2001 | 1.26 billion cubic meters | +24.4% |
| 2002 | 1.50 billion cubic meters | +19.6% |
| 2003 | 1.75 billion cubic meters | +16.4% |
| 2004 | 1.77 billion cubic meters | +1.3% |
| 2005 | 1.79 billion cubic meters | +1.3% |
| 2006 | 1.82 billion cubic meters | +1.2% |
| 2007 | 1.84 billion cubic meters | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 1.86 billion cubic meters | +1.2% |
| 2009 | 1.88 billion cubic meters | +1.2% |
| 2010 | 1.91 billion cubic meters | +1.2% |
| 2011 | 1.91 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 1.91 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 1.91 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 1.91 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 1.91 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 3.23 billion cubic meters | +69.5% |
| 2017 | 3.25 billion cubic meters | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 3.26 billion cubic meters | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 3.28 billion cubic meters | +0.5% |
| 2020 | 3.29 billion cubic meters | +0.5% |
| 2021 | 3.31 billion cubic meters | +0.5% |
| 2022 | 4.01 billion cubic meters | +21.2% |
| 2023 | 4.31 billion cubic meters | +7.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 1.32 billion cubic meters | 1.07 billion cubic meters | 1.57 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.65 billion cubic meters | 1.01 billion cubic meters | 1.88 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.45 billion cubic meters | 1.91 billion cubic meters | 3.28 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.73 billion cubic meters | 3.29 billion cubic meters | 4.31 billion cubic meters | 4 |
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 withdrawals in Kenya?
- Agricultural water withdrawals in Kenya was 4.31 billion cubic meters in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations - AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest agricultural water withdrawals recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 4.31 billion cubic meters in 2023.
- What is the lowest agricultural water withdrawals recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.01 billion cubic meters in 2000.
- How does Kenya rank for agricultural water withdrawals?
- Kenya ranks 55th out of 180 countries with data for 2023.
- Is agricultural water withdrawals rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is up 125.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Kenya data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations - AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Agricultural water withdrawals. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Water withdrawn each year for irrigation, livestock, and aquaculture.