Share of cereals allocated to human food vs. GDP per capita in Malawi
Malawi: Share of cereals allocated to human food vs. GDP per capita was 88.3% in 2023. ▬ Flat
Latest (2023)
88.3%
Change on year
up 6.1%
World rank
44th
of 192 countries
All-time high
96.3%
in 2015
All-time low
81.7%
in 2021
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Share of cereals allocated to human food vs. GDP per capita in Malawi, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of cereals allocated to human food vs. gdp per capita in Malawi is 88.3%, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of up 6.1% on the previous year and down 2.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of cereals allocated to human food vs. gdp per capita in Malawi peaked at 96.3% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 81.7%, in 2021.
That places Malawi 44th out of 192 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
Share of cereals allocated to human food vs. GDP per capita in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 90.0% | — |
| 1962 | 87.6% | -2.7% |
| 1963 | 92.3% | +5.4% |
| 1964 | 93.0% | +0.7% |
| 1965 | 92.0% | -1.0% |
| 1966 | 92.1% | +0.1% |
| 1967 | 89.1% | -3.2% |
| 1968 | 89.2% | +0.2% |
| 1969 | 90.5% | +1.4% |
| 1970 | 90.2% | -0.3% |
| 1971 | 87.1% | -3.5% |
| 1972 | 87.0% | -0.1% |
| 1973 | 87.2% | +0.3% |
| 1974 | 87.3% | +0.1% |
| 1975 | 88.3% | +1.1% |
| 1976 | 88.6% | +0.3% |
| 1977 | 88.7% | +0.1% |
| 1978 | 90.1% | +1.5% |
| 1979 | 90.2% | +0.1% |
| 1980 | 91.2% | +1.1% |
| 1981 | 93.3% | +2.4% |
| 1982 | 93.1% | -0.2% |
| 1983 | 95.5% | +2.5% |
| 1984 | 95.7% | +0.3% |
| 1985 | 95.9% | +0.2% |
| 1986 | 95.1% | -0.8% |
| 1987 | 95.4% | +0.3% |
| 1988 | 95.1% | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 95.3% | +0.2% |
| 1990 | 95.3% | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 90.6% | -5.0% |
| 1992 | 93.2% | +2.8% |
| 1993 | 82.9% | -11.1% |
| 1994 | 93.7% | +13.0% |
| 1995 | 89.9% | -4.1% |
| 1996 | 89.3% | -0.6% |
| 1997 | 90.0% | +0.7% |
| 1998 | 89.8% | -0.2% |
| 1999 | 86.8% | -3.3% |
| 2000 | 87.2% | +0.5% |
| 2001 | 91.4% | +4.8% |
| 2002 | 91.4% | -0.0% |
| 2003 | 91.6% | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 91.9% | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 94.0% | +2.2% |
| 2006 | 85.7% | -8.8% |
| 2007 | 84.1% | -1.8% |
| 2008 | 85.6% | +1.7% |
| 2009 | 82.6% | -3.5% |
| 2010 | 88.5% | +7.2% |
| 2011 | 88.3% | -0.3% |
| 2012 | 88.7% | +0.5% |
| 2013 | 90.5% | +2.0% |
| 2014 | 95.9% | +6.0% |
| 2015 | 96.3% | +0.4% |
| 2016 | 96.3% | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 90.9% | -5.6% |
| 2018 | 92.9% | +2.2% |
| 2019 | 94.8% | +2.0% |
| 2020 | 85.5% | -9.7% |
| 2021 | 81.7% | -4.5% |
| 2022 | 83.2% | +1.8% |
| 2023 | 88.3% | +6.1% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 88.3% is below the median for low income countries, which is 94.6%, 93% of the median. (23 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 88.3% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 88.3%, 1.0× the median. (45 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 90.6% | 87.6% | 93.0% | 9 |
| 1970s | 88.5% | 87.0% | 90.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | 94.6% | 91.2% | 95.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 90.1% | 82.9% | 95.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 88.6% | 82.6% | 94.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 92.3% | 88.3% | 96.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 84.7% | 81.7% | 88.3% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
- 41 Democratic Republic of Congo 89.8% compare
- 42 North Korea 89.0% compare
- 43 Antigua and Barbuda 88.9% compare
- 45 Zimbabwe 88.1% compare
- 46 Hong Kong 87.3% compare
- 47 Ethiopia 86.9% compare
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 share of cereals allocated to human food vs. gdp per capita in Malawi?
- Share of cereals allocated to human food vs. gdp per capita in Malawi was 88.3% in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of cereals allocated to human food vs. gdp per capita recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 96.3% in 2015.
- What is the lowest share of cereals allocated to human food vs. gdp per capita recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 81.7% in 2021.
- How does Malawi rank for share of cereals allocated to human food vs. gdp per capita?
- Malawi ranks 44th out of 192 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of cereals allocated to human food vs. gdp per capita rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Malawi 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 Share of cereals allocated to human food vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Share of domestic cereal supply allocated to direct human food, rather than animal feed or biofuels. GDP is adjusted for inflation and differences in living costs across countries.