Cereal production in Lesotho
Lesotho: Cereal production was 67,527 in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
67,527
Change on year
down 52.8%
World rank
147th
of 186 countries
All-time high
288,249
in 1978
All-time low
25,678
in 2016
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Cereal production in Lesotho, 1961–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for cereal production in Lesotho is 67,527, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of down 52.8% on the previous year and down 41.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cereal production in Lesotho peaked at 288,249 in 1978 and was at its lowest, 25,678, in 2016.
Lesotho ranks 147th of 186 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 64 years of available data.
Cereal production in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 226,648 | — |
| 1962 | 223,800 | -1.3% |
| 1963 | 223,400 | -0.2% |
| 1964 | 222,000 | -0.6% |
| 1965 | 216,800 | -2.3% |
| 1966 | 223,400 | +3.0% |
| 1967 | 217,300 | -2.7% |
| 1968 | 212,506 | -2.2% |
| 1969 | 211,684 | -0.4% |
| 1970 | 182,536 | -13.8% |
| 1971 | 197,254 | +8.1% |
| 1972 | 104,350 | -47.1% |
| 1973 | 150,350 | +44.1% |
| 1974 | 264,905 | +76.2% |
| 1975 | 154,422 | -41.7% |
| 1976 | 119,658 | -22.5% |
| 1977 | 251,026 | +109.8% |
| 1978 | 288,249 | +14.8% |
| 1979 | 228,837 | -20.6% |
| 1980 | 194,497 | -15.0% |
| 1981 | 171,796 | -11.7% |
| 1982 | 125,048 | -27.2% |
| 1983 | 123,097 | -1.6% |
| 1984 | 131,679 | +7.0% |
| 1985 | 167,107 | +26.9% |
| 1986 | 132,455 | -20.7% |
| 1987 | 146,191 | +10.4% |
| 1988 | 233,910 | +60.0% |
| 1989 | 199,365 | -14.8% |
| 1990 | 242,119 | +21.4% |
| 1991 | 67,254 | -72.2% |
| 1992 | 93,800 | +39.5% |
| 1993 | 153,256 | +63.4% |
| 1994 | 222,853 | +45.4% |
| 1995 | 81,221 | -63.6% |
| 1996 | 257,418 | +216.9% |
| 1997 | 206,026 | -20.0% |
| 1998 | 171,933 | -16.5% |
| 1999 | 173,865 | +1.1% |
| 2000 | 149,723 | -13.9% |
| 2001 | 254,960 | +70.3% |
| 2002 | 149,947 | -41.2% |
| 2003 | 116,475 | -22.3% |
| 2004 | 109,280 | -6.2% |
| 2005 | 111,647 | +2.2% |
| 2006 | 87,205 | -21.9% |
| 2007 | 71,887 | -17.6% |
| 2008 | 72,997 | +1.5% |
| 2009 | 74,121 | +1.5% |
| 2010 | 173,193 | +133.7% |
| 2011 | 103,897 | -40.0% |
| 2012 | 101,382 | -2.4% |
| 2013 | 107,452 | +6.0% |
| 2014 | 115,733 | +7.7% |
| 2015 | 82,840 | -28.4% |
| 2016 | 25,678 | -69.0% |
| 2017 | 216,012 | +741.2% |
| 2018 | 157,857 | -26.9% |
| 2019 | 35,092 | -77.8% |
| 2020 | 28,536 | -18.7% |
| 2021 | 98,326 | +244.6% |
| 2022 | 82,450 | -16.1% |
| 2023 | 142,973 | +73.4% |
| 2024 | 67,527 | -52.8% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 67,527 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 1.95 million, 3% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 67,527 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1.65 million, 4% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Cereal production in Lesotho changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | +741.2% | 25,678 | 216,012 |
| 2021 | +244.6% | 28,536 | 98,326 |
| 1996 | +216.9% | 81,221 | 257,418 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 219,726 | 211,684 | 226,648 | 9 |
| 1970s | 194,159 | 104,350 | 288,249 | 10 |
| 1980s | 162,514 | 123,097 | 233,910 | 10 |
| 1990s | 166,974 | 67,254 | 257,418 | 10 |
| 2000s | 119,824 | 71,887 | 254,960 | 10 |
| 2010s | 111,914 | 25,678 | 216,012 | 10 |
| 2020s | 83,962 | 28,536 | 142,973 | 5 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More agriculture & rural data for Lesotho
- Cropland extent over the long-term, annual growth rate -0.0139 % change on previous year (2025)
- Cropland extent over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0.0002 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Cropland extent over the long-term, per capita 0.1831 hectares per person (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, annual growth rate -0.0072 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0.0003 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, per capita 0.3524 hectares per person (2025)
- 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)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cereal production in Lesotho?
- Cereal production in Lesotho was 67,527 in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest cereal production recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 288,249 in 1978.
- What is the lowest cereal production recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 25,678 in 2016.
- How does Lesotho rank for cereal production?
- Lesotho ranks 147th out of 186 countries with data for 2024.
- Is cereal production rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 41.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Lesotho data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Cereal production. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).