Cereal yield vs. GDP per capita in Malawi
Malawi: Cereal yield vs. GDP per capita was 1.86 kg per hectare in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
1.86 kg per hectare
Change on year
down 4.5%
World rank
128th
of 180 countries
All-time high
2.47 kg per hectare
in 2007
All-time low
0.4816 kg per hectare
in 1992
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Cereal yield vs. GDP per capita in Malawi, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in kg per hectare.
Analysis
Malawi recorded 1.86 kg per hectare for cereal yield vs. gdp per capita in 2023.
The figure is down 4.5% on the previous year and down 10.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cereal yield vs. gdp per capita in Malawi peaked at 2.47 kg per hectare in 2007 and was at its lowest, 0.4816 kg per hectare, in 1992.
Malawi ranks 128th of 180 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
Cereal yield vs. GDP per capita in Malawi, year by year
| Year | kg per hectare | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 0.9845 kg per hectare | — |
| 1962 | 1.03 kg per hectare | +4.3% |
| 1963 | 0.8767 kg per hectare | -14.6% |
| 1964 | 1.08 kg per hectare | +22.8% |
| 1965 | 0.8565 kg per hectare | -20.5% |
| 1966 | 0.9052 kg per hectare | +5.7% |
| 1967 | 1.38 kg per hectare | +52.6% |
| 1968 | 0.9953 kg per hectare | -27.9% |
| 1969 | 0.9673 kg per hectare | -2.8% |
| 1970 | 0.8884 kg per hectare | -8.2% |
| 1971 | 1.13 kg per hectare | +27.6% |
| 1972 | 1.15 kg per hectare | +1.4% |
| 1973 | 1.1 kg per hectare | -4.0% |
| 1974 | 1.13 kg per hectare | +2.6% |
| 1975 | 1.01 kg per hectare | -10.4% |
| 1976 | 1.11 kg per hectare | +9.4% |
| 1977 | 1.3 kg per hectare | +17.0% |
| 1978 | 1.25 kg per hectare | -4.0% |
| 1979 | 1.18 kg per hectare | -5.8% |
| 1980 | 1.19 kg per hectare | +1.1% |
| 1981 | 1.12 kg per hectare | -5.5% |
| 1982 | 1.17 kg per hectare | +4.2% |
| 1983 | 1.15 kg per hectare | -2.0% |
| 1984 | 1.18 kg per hectare | +3.0% |
| 1985 | 1.17 kg per hectare | -1.0% |
| 1986 | 1.08 kg per hectare | -7.9% |
| 1987 | 1 kg per hectare | -6.9% |
| 1988 | 1.16 kg per hectare | +15.4% |
| 1989 | 1.18 kg per hectare | +2.0% |
| 1990 | 0.9915 kg per hectare | -15.9% |
| 1991 | 1.14 kg per hectare | +15.1% |
| 1992 | 0.4816 kg per hectare | -57.8% |
| 1993 | 1.49 kg per hectare | +209.1% |
| 1994 | 0.8964 kg per hectare | -39.8% |
| 1995 | 1.31 kg per hectare | +46.1% |
| 1996 | 1.39 kg per hectare | +6.2% |
| 1997 | 1.05 kg per hectare | -24.2% |
| 1998 | 1.32 kg per hectare | +25.4% |
| 1999 | 1.75 kg per hectare | +32.0% |
| 2000 | 1.68 kg per hectare | -4.0% |
| 2001 | 1.18 kg per hectare | -29.8% |
| 2002 | 1.05 kg per hectare | -11.0% |
| 2003 | 1.21 kg per hectare | +15.6% |
| 2004 | 1.02 kg per hectare | -15.6% |
| 2005 | 0.7778 kg per hectare | -23.8% |
| 2006 | 1.44 kg per hectare | +85.7% |
| 2007 | 2.47 kg per hectare | +70.8% |
| 2008 | 1.6 kg per hectare | -35.2% |
| 2009 | 2.12 kg per hectare | +32.9% |
| 2010 | 1.91 kg per hectare | -10.2% |
| 2011 | 2.09 kg per hectare | +9.8% |
| 2012 | 2.09 kg per hectare | -0.3% |
| 2013 | 2.07 kg per hectare | -0.9% |
| 2014 | 2.22 kg per hectare | +7.2% |
| 2015 | 1.59 kg per hectare | -28.3% |
| 2016 | 1.35 kg per hectare | -15.3% |
| 2017 | 1.9 kg per hectare | +41.2% |
| 2018 | 1.53 kg per hectare | -19.5% |
| 2019 | 1.87 kg per hectare | +22.4% |
| 2020 | 2 kg per hectare | +7.0% |
| 2021 | 2.32 kg per hectare | +15.7% |
| 2022 | 1.94 kg per hectare | -16.2% |
| 2023 | 1.86 kg per hectare | -4.5% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 1.86 kg per hectare is above the median for low income countries, which is 1.16 kg per hectare, 1.6× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 1.86 kg per hectare is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1.35 kg per hectare, 1.4× the median. (45 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Cereal yield vs. GDP per capita in Malawi 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | +209.1% | 0.4816 kg per hectare | 1.49 kg per hectare |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.01 kg per hectare | 0.8565 kg per hectare | 1.38 kg per hectare | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.13 kg per hectare | 0.8884 kg per hectare | 1.3 kg per hectare | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.14 kg per hectare | 1 kg per hectare | 1.19 kg per hectare | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.18 kg per hectare | 0.4816 kg per hectare | 1.75 kg per hectare | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.45 kg per hectare | 0.7778 kg per hectare | 2.47 kg per hectare | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.86 kg per hectare | 1.35 kg per hectare | 2.22 kg per hectare | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.03 kg per hectare | 1.86 kg per hectare | 2.32 kg per hectare | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More agriculture & rural data for Malawi
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 24.6 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.3003 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 201.66 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 2.19 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0012 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.8241 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 30.0% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 30.0% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.7% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cereal yield vs. gdp per capita in Malawi?
- Cereal yield vs. gdp per capita in Malawi was 1.86 kg per hectare in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest cereal yield vs. gdp per capita recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 2.47 kg per hectare in 2007.
- What is the lowest cereal yield vs. gdp per capita recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.4816 kg per hectare in 1992.
- How does Malawi rank for cereal yield vs. gdp per capita?
- Malawi ranks 128th out of 180 countries with data for 2023.
- Is cereal yield vs. gdp per capita rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Cereal yield vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Average cereal yield, measured in tonnes per hectare versus gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. GDP per capita is adjusted for inflation and differences in living costs between countries.