Cereal yields in Zambia
Zambia: Cereal yields was 2.32 tonnes per hectare in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
2.32 tonnes per hectare
Change on year
down 1.1%
World rank
114th
of 186 countries
All-time high
3.03 tonnes per hectare
in 2015
All-time low
0.6244 tonnes per hectare
in 1970
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Cereal yields in Zambia, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes per hectare.
Analysis
Zambia recorded 2.32 tonnes per hectare for cereal yields in 2024.
The figure is down 1.1% on the previous year and down 16.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cereal yields in Zambia peaked at 3.03 tonnes per hectare in 2015 and was at its lowest, 0.6244 tonnes per hectare, in 1970.
That places Zambia 114th out of 186 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Cereal yields in Zambia, year by year
| Year | tonnes per hectare | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 0.8222 tonnes per hectare | — |
| 1962 | 0.8014 tonnes per hectare | -2.5% |
| 1963 | 0.7069 tonnes per hectare | -11.8% |
| 1964 | 0.7889 tonnes per hectare | +11.6% |
| 1965 | 0.8235 tonnes per hectare | +4.4% |
| 1966 | 0.878 tonnes per hectare | +6.6% |
| 1967 | 0.8696 tonnes per hectare | -1.0% |
| 1968 | 0.7852 tonnes per hectare | -9.7% |
| 1969 | 0.774 tonnes per hectare | -1.4% |
| 1970 | 0.6244 tonnes per hectare | -19.3% |
| 1971 | 0.8763 tonnes per hectare | +40.3% |
| 1972 | 1.01 tonnes per hectare | +14.9% |
| 1973 | 0.8387 tonnes per hectare | -16.7% |
| 1974 | 0.9677 tonnes per hectare | +15.4% |
| 1975 | 1.31 tonnes per hectare | +35.5% |
| 1976 | 1.38 tonnes per hectare | +4.9% |
| 1977 | 1.5 tonnes per hectare | +9.4% |
| 1978 | 1.52 tonnes per hectare | +0.7% |
| 1979 | 1.53 tonnes per hectare | +0.9% |
| 1980 | 1.57 tonnes per hectare | +2.5% |
| 1981 | 1.93 tonnes per hectare | +23.2% |
| 1982 | 1.57 tonnes per hectare | -18.6% |
| 1983 | 1.65 tonnes per hectare | +5.0% |
| 1984 | 1.65 tonnes per hectare | -0.3% |
| 1985 | 1.84 tonnes per hectare | +11.9% |
| 1986 | 1.93 tonnes per hectare | +4.8% |
| 1987 | 1.61 tonnes per hectare | -16.6% |
| 1988 | 2.46 tonnes per hectare | +52.6% |
| 1989 | 1.72 tonnes per hectare | -30.1% |
| 1990 | 1.35 tonnes per hectare | -21.3% |
| 1991 | 1.64 tonnes per hectare | +21.4% |
| 1992 | 0.7631 tonnes per hectare | -53.5% |
| 1993 | 2.3 tonnes per hectare | +201.8% |
| 1994 | 1.42 tonnes per hectare | -38.4% |
| 1995 | 1.33 tonnes per hectare | -6.1% |
| 1996 | 1.91 tonnes per hectare | +43.6% |
| 1997 | 1.41 tonnes per hectare | -26.1% |
| 1998 | 1.21 tonnes per hectare | -14.3% |
| 1999 | 1.32 tonnes per hectare | +9.3% |
| 2000 | 1.68 tonnes per hectare | +27.1% |
| 2001 | 1.4 tonnes per hectare | -16.6% |
| 2002 | 1.63 tonnes per hectare | +16.1% |
| 2003 | 1.72 tonnes per hectare | +5.6% |
| 2004 | 1.83 tonnes per hectare | +6.0% |
| 2005 | 1.91 tonnes per hectare | +4.4% |
| 2006 | 2.15 tonnes per hectare | +12.6% |
| 2007 | 2.26 tonnes per hectare | +5.3% |
| 2008 | 2.19 tonnes per hectare | -3.1% |
| 2009 | 2.07 tonnes per hectare | -5.3% |
| 2010 | 2.54 tonnes per hectare | +22.6% |
| 2011 | 2.75 tonnes per hectare | +8.0% |
| 2012 | 2.71 tonnes per hectare | -1.3% |
| 2013 | 2.6 tonnes per hectare | -4.2% |
| 2014 | 2.77 tonnes per hectare | +6.9% |
| 2015 | 3.03 tonnes per hectare | +9.1% |
| 2016 | 2.43 tonnes per hectare | -19.6% |
| 2017 | 2.49 tonnes per hectare | +2.4% |
| 2018 | 2.17 tonnes per hectare | -12.9% |
| 2019 | 2.4 tonnes per hectare | +10.7% |
| 2020 | 2.48 tonnes per hectare | +3.4% |
| 2021 | 2.52 tonnes per hectare | +1.7% |
| 2022 | 2.46 tonnes per hectare | -2.7% |
| 2023 | 2.34 tonnes per hectare | -4.6% |
| 2024 | 2.32 tonnes per hectare | -1.1% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 2.32 tonnes per hectare is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 2.02 tonnes per hectare, 1.1× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 2.32 tonnes per hectare is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1.34 tonnes per hectare, 1.7× the median. (46 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Cereal yields in Zambia 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 | +201.8% | 0.7631 tonnes per hectare | 2.3 tonnes per hectare |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.8055 tonnes per hectare | 0.7069 tonnes per hectare | 0.878 tonnes per hectare | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.16 tonnes per hectare | 0.6244 tonnes per hectare | 1.53 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.79 tonnes per hectare | 1.57 tonnes per hectare | 2.46 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.47 tonnes per hectare | 0.7631 tonnes per hectare | 2.3 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.88 tonnes per hectare | 1.4 tonnes per hectare | 2.26 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.59 tonnes per hectare | 2.17 tonnes per hectare | 3.03 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.43 tonnes per hectare | 2.32 tonnes per hectare | 2.52 tonnes per hectare | 5 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
- 111 Moldova 2.41 tonnes per hectare compare
- 112 Madagascar 2.39 tonnes per hectare compare
- 113 Afghanistan 2.36 tonnes per hectare compare
- 115 Guatemala 2.24 tonnes per hectare compare
- 116 Bolivia 2.21 tonnes per hectare compare
- 117 East Timor 2.11 tonnes per hectare compare
More agriculture & rural data for Zambia
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 65.37 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0411 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 54.11 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.97 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0004 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5408 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 4.1% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 4.1% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.4% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.7% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cereal yields in Zambia?
- Cereal yields in Zambia was 2.32 tonnes per hectare in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest cereal yields recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 3.03 tonnes per hectare in 2015.
- What is the lowest cereal yields recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.6244 tonnes per hectare in 1970.
- How does Zambia rank for cereal yields?
- Zambia ranks 114th out of 186 countries with data for 2024.
- Is cereal yields rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 16.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Zambia data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Cereal yields. 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).
About this data
Measured in tonnes per hectare.