Cotton yields in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: Cotton yields was 1.32 tonnes per hectare in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
1.32 tonnes per hectare
Change on year
up 1.0%
World rank
50th
of 101 countries
All-time high
1.6 tonnes per hectare
in 1969
All-time low
0.6545 tonnes per hectare
in 1989
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Cotton yields in Afghanistan, 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
In 2024, cotton yields in Afghanistan stood at 1.32 tonnes per hectare.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.0% on the previous year and up 8.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cotton yields in Afghanistan peaked at 1.6 tonnes per hectare in 1969 and was at its lowest, 0.6545 tonnes per hectare, in 1989.
Afghanistan ranks 50th of 101 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Cotton yields in Afghanistan, year by year
| Year | tonnes per hectare | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 0.6802 tonnes per hectare | — |
| 1962 | 0.8786 tonnes per hectare | +29.2% |
| 1963 | 0.9307 tonnes per hectare | +5.9% |
| 1964 | 0.6589 tonnes per hectare | -29.2% |
| 1965 | 0.9513 tonnes per hectare | +44.4% |
| 1966 | 1.31 tonnes per hectare | +38.0% |
| 1967 | 1.34 tonnes per hectare | +2.5% |
| 1968 | 1.34 tonnes per hectare | -0.6% |
| 1969 | 1.6 tonnes per hectare | +19.7% |
| 1970 | 1.44 tonnes per hectare | -10.2% |
| 1971 | 1.2 tonnes per hectare | -16.2% |
| 1972 | 1.16 tonnes per hectare | -3.4% |
| 1973 | 1.48 tonnes per hectare | +27.6% |
| 1974 | 1.08 tonnes per hectare | -27.2% |
| 1975 | 1.46 tonnes per hectare | +35.6% |
| 1976 | 1.27 tonnes per hectare | -13.0% |
| 1977 | 1.09 tonnes per hectare | -14.1% |
| 1978 | 1.21 tonnes per hectare | +10.2% |
| 1979 | 1.29 tonnes per hectare | +6.7% |
| 1980 | 1.49 tonnes per hectare | +15.8% |
| 1981 | 0.8493 tonnes per hectare | -43.0% |
| 1982 | 0.6897 tonnes per hectare | -18.8% |
| 1983 | 0.75 tonnes per hectare | +8.7% |
| 1984 | 1.03 tonnes per hectare | +37.3% |
| 1985 | 0.7467 tonnes per hectare | -27.5% |
| 1986 | 0.938 tonnes per hectare | +25.6% |
| 1987 | 1 tonnes per hectare | +6.6% |
| 1988 | 1 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 0.6545 tonnes per hectare | -34.6% |
| 1990 | 1.04 tonnes per hectare | +58.2% |
| 1991 | 1.13 tonnes per hectare | +9.4% |
| 1992 | 1.13 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 1.13 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 1.13 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 1.13 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 1.13 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 1.13 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 1.13 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 1.13 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 1.14 tonnes per hectare | +0.6% |
| 2001 | 1.14 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 1.14 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 1.1 tonnes per hectare | -3.5% |
| 2004 | 1.1 tonnes per hectare | -0.2% |
| 2005 | 1.1 tonnes per hectare | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 1 tonnes per hectare | -8.9% |
| 2007 | 1 tonnes per hectare | -0.0% |
| 2008 | 1 tonnes per hectare | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 1.3 tonnes per hectare | +29.9% |
| 2010 | 1 tonnes per hectare | -23.0% |
| 2011 | 1 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 1.1 tonnes per hectare | +10.0% |
| 2013 | 1.16 tonnes per hectare | +5.6% |
| 2014 | 1.22 tonnes per hectare | +5.3% |
| 2015 | 1.2 tonnes per hectare | -2.1% |
| 2016 | 1.15 tonnes per hectare | -3.7% |
| 2017 | 1.15 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 1.45 tonnes per hectare | +26.0% |
| 2019 | 1.48 tonnes per hectare | +1.8% |
| 2020 | 1.31 tonnes per hectare | -11.9% |
| 2021 | 1.37 tonnes per hectare | +4.6% |
| 2022 | 1.32 tonnes per hectare | -3.3% |
| 2023 | 1.31 tonnes per hectare | -1.0% |
| 2024 | 1.32 tonnes per hectare | +1.0% |
Afghanistan compared with similar countries
- Afghanistan's 1.32 tonnes per hectare is above the median for low income countries, which is 1.03 tonnes per hectare, 1.3× the median. (21 countries reporting)
- Afghanistan's 1.32 tonnes per hectare is below the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 1.92 tonnes per hectare, 69% of the median. (11 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Cotton yields in Afghanistan 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | +58.2% | 0.6545 tonnes per hectare | 1.04 tonnes per hectare |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.08 tonnes per hectare | 0.6589 tonnes per hectare | 1.6 tonnes per hectare | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.27 tonnes per hectare | 1.08 tonnes per hectare | 1.48 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.9146 tonnes per hectare | 0.6545 tonnes per hectare | 1.49 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.12 tonnes per hectare | 1.04 tonnes per hectare | 1.13 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.1 tonnes per hectare | 1 tonnes per hectare | 1.3 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.19 tonnes per hectare | 1 tonnes per hectare | 1.48 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.32 tonnes per hectare | 1.31 tonnes per hectare | 1.37 tonnes per hectare | 5 |
Countries ranked near Afghanistan
More agriculture & rural data for Afghanistan
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 2.31 % change on previous year (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.3429 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 142.96 current US$ per person (2024)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 2.47 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0018 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Rural population, per capita 0.7406 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 34.3% (2024)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 34.3% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 21.0% (2019)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.8% (2019)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cotton yields in Afghanistan?
- Cotton yields in Afghanistan was 1.32 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 cotton yields recorded in Afghanistan?
- The highest recorded value was 1.6 tonnes per hectare in 1969.
- What is the lowest cotton yields recorded in Afghanistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.6545 tonnes per hectare in 1989.
- How does Afghanistan rank for cotton yields?
- Afghanistan ranks 50th out of 101 countries with data for 2024.
- Is cotton yields rising or falling in Afghanistan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Afghanistan 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 Cotton 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
Yield is the amount produced per unit of land used, measured in tonnes per hectare.