Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in South Africa
South Africa: Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture was 59.4% in 2022. ▼ Falling
Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in South Africa, 1990–2022
Source: AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in % of total freshwater withdrawal.
Analysis
In 2022, annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in South Africa stood at 59.4%.
That represents a change of down 3.1% on the previous year and down 4.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in South Africa peaked at 72.0% in 1990 and was at its lowest, 57.8%, in 2018.
That places South Africa 92nd out of 180 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 33 years of available data.
Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % of total freshwater withdrawal | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 72.0% | — |
| 1991 | 71.1% | -1.2% |
| 1992 | 70.2% | -1.2% |
| 1993 | 69.3% | -1.3% |
| 1994 | 68.4% | -1.3% |
| 1995 | 67.5% | -1.3% |
| 1996 | 66.3% | -1.8% |
| 1997 | 65.0% | -1.9% |
| 1998 | 63.8% | -1.9% |
| 1999 | 62.5% | -2.0% |
| 2000 | 61.3% | -2.0% |
| 2001 | 61.4% | +0.2% |
| 2002 | 61.5% | +0.2% |
| 2003 | 61.6% | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 61.7% | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 61.8% | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 61.9% | +0.2% |
| 2007 | 62.0% | +0.2% |
| 2008 | 62.1% | +0.2% |
| 2009 | 62.2% | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 62.3% | +0.1% |
| 2011 | 62.4% | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 62.4% | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 62.5% | +0.1% |
| 2014 | 61.6% | -1.5% |
| 2015 | 60.8% | -1.3% |
| 2016 | 59.5% | -2.1% |
| 2017 | 58.8% | -1.2% |
| 2018 | 57.8% | -1.6% |
| 2019 | 60.8% | +5.2% |
| 2020 | 62.5% | +2.7% |
| 2021 | 61.3% | -1.8% |
| 2022 | 59.4% | -3.1% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 59.4% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 63.5%, 93% of the median. (52 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 59.4% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 61.3%, 97% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 67.6% | 62.5% | 72.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 61.7% | 61.3% | 62.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 60.9% | 57.8% | 62.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 61.1% | 59.4% | 62.5% | 3 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More agriculture & rural data for South Africa
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 7.11 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0283 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 186.56 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.812 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.3618 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 2.8% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 2.8% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 2.0% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in South Africa?
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in South Africa was 59.4% in 2022, according to AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 72.0% in 1990.
- What is the lowest annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 57.8% in 2018.
- How does South Africa rank for annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture?
- South Africa ranks 92nd out of 180 countries with data for 2022.
- Is annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture (% of total freshwater withdrawal). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Annual freshwater withdrawals refer to total water withdrawals, not counting evaporation losses from storage basins. Withdrawals also include water from desalination plants in countries where they are a significant source. Withdrawals can exceed 100 percent of total renewable resources where extraction from nonrenewable aquifers or desalination plants is considerable or where there is significant water reuse. Withdrawals for agriculture are total withdrawals for irrigation and livestock production. Data are for the most recent year available for 1987-2002.