Cereal cropland in Lesotho
Lesotho: Cereal cropland was 5.2% in 2011. ▼ Falling
Cereal cropland in Lesotho, 1961–2011
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization, Production Yearbook and data files. Measured in % of land area.
Analysis
Lesotho recorded 5.2% for cereal cropland in 2011.
The figure is down 17.8% on the previous year and down 38.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cereal cropland in Lesotho peaked at 10.4% in 1971 and was at its lowest, 3.5%, in 1995.
Lesotho ranks 22nd of 51 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 51 years of available data.
Cereal cropland in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | % of land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 8.9% | — |
| 1962 | 9.0% | +1.3% |
| 1963 | 9.0% | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 9.0% | -0.2% |
| 1965 | 9.4% | +4.6% |
| 1966 | 9.2% | -2.5% |
| 1967 | 9.6% | +4.1% |
| 1968 | 10.3% | +7.4% |
| 1969 | 10.2% | -0.4% |
| 1970 | 9.9% | -3.1% |
| 1971 | 10.4% | +5.1% |
| 1972 | 9.2% | -12.2% |
| 1973 | 8.4% | -8.1% |
| 1974 | 9.6% | +13.9% |
| 1975 | 7.2% | -24.6% |
| 1976 | 6.2% | -14.9% |
| 1977 | 5.5% | -10.9% |
| 1978 | 6.8% | +23.5% |
| 1979 | 6.6% | -2.3% |
| 1980 | 6.7% | +0.9% |
| 1981 | 6.8% | +2.0% |
| 1982 | 6.2% | -9.0% |
| 1983 | 6.0% | -3.8% |
| 1984 | 6.7% | +12.1% |
| 1985 | 7.6% | +14.3% |
| 1986 | 6.4% | -15.9% |
| 1987 | 8.0% | +24.6% |
| 1988 | 9.3% | +15.9% |
| 1989 | 7.1% | -23.0% |
| 1990 | 7.7% | +7.7% |
| 1991 | 4.8% | -37.5% |
| 1992 | 5.0% | +4.9% |
| 1993 | 5.2% | +2.9% |
| 1994 | 9.0% | +73.2% |
| 1995 | 3.5% | -61.5% |
| 1996 | 7.2% | +107.2% |
| 1997 | 6.7% | -6.6% |
| 1998 | 4.2% | -37.5% |
| 1999 | 6.1% | +45.1% |
| 2000 | 6.9% | +13.0% |
| 2001 | 8.4% | +22.9% |
| 2002 | 6.7% | -20.6% |
| 2003 | 6.3% | -6.1% |
| 2004 | 6.0% | -4.0% |
| 2005 | 5.3% | -11.6% |
| 2006 | 7.5% | +40.4% |
| 2007 | 5.5% | -26.6% |
| 2008 | 6.3% | +13.7% |
| 2009 | 5.9% | -5.6% |
| 2010 | 6.3% | +6.3% |
| 2011 | 5.2% | -17.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 9.4% | 8.9% | 10.3% | 9 |
| 1970s | 8.0% | 5.5% | 10.4% | 10 |
| 1980s | 7.1% | 6.0% | 9.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.9% | 3.5% | 9.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 6.5% | 5.3% | 8.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.7% | 5.2% | 6.3% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More agriculture & rural data for Lesotho
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 5.38 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0649 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 70.63 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.6715 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0005 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5533 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 6.5% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 6.5% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 5.1% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.0% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cereal cropland in Lesotho?
- Cereal cropland in Lesotho was 5.2% in 2011, according to Food and Agriculture Organization, Production Yearbook and data files.
- What is the highest cereal cropland recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 10.4% in 1971.
- What is the lowest cereal cropland recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.5% in 1995.
- How does Lesotho rank for cereal cropland?
- Lesotho ranks 22nd out of 51 countries with data for 2011.
- Is cereal cropland rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 38.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Lesotho data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization, Production Yearbook and data files, published as part of Cereal cropland (% of land area). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 51 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Land under cereal production refers to harvested area, although some countries report only sown or cultivated area. Cereals include wheat, rice, maize, barley, oats, rye, millet, sorghum, buckwheat, and mixed grains. Production data on cereals relate to crops harvested for dry grain only. Cereal crops harvested for hay or harvested green for food, feed, or silage and those used for grazing are excluded.