Cropland area in Eswatini
Eswatini: Cropland area was 195,000 hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
195,000 hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
145th
of 224 countries
All-time high
204,000 hectares
in 1989
All-time low
126,000 hectares
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Cropland area in Eswatini, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
Eswatini recorded 195,000 hectares for cropland area in 2023.
That represents a change of up 1.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cropland area in Eswatini peaked at 204,000 hectares in 1989 and was at its lowest, 126,000 hectares, in 1961.
Eswatini ranks 145th of 224 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.
Cropland area in Eswatini, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 126,000 hectares | — |
| 1962 | 136,000 hectares | +7.9% |
| 1963 | 132,000 hectares | -2.9% |
| 1964 | 135,000 hectares | +2.3% |
| 1965 | 142,000 hectares | +5.2% |
| 1966 | 151,000 hectares | +6.3% |
| 1967 | 155,000 hectares | +2.6% |
| 1968 | 156,000 hectares | +0.6% |
| 1969 | 152,000 hectares | -2.6% |
| 1970 | 152,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 152,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 171,000 hectares | +12.5% |
| 1973 | 171,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 158,000 hectares | -7.6% |
| 1975 | 170,000 hectares | +7.6% |
| 1976 | 165,000 hectares | -2.9% |
| 1977 | 153,000 hectares | -7.3% |
| 1978 | 194,000 hectares | +26.8% |
| 1979 | 190,000 hectares | -2.1% |
| 1980 | 189,000 hectares | -0.5% |
| 1981 | 142,000 hectares | -24.9% |
| 1982 | 141,000 hectares | -0.7% |
| 1983 | 141,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 179,000 hectares | +27.0% |
| 1985 | 164,000 hectares | -8.4% |
| 1986 | 164,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 177,000 hectares | +7.9% |
| 1988 | 190,000 hectares | +7.3% |
| 1989 | 204,000 hectares | +7.4% |
| 1990 | 192,000 hectares | -5.9% |
| 1991 | 195,000 hectares | +1.6% |
| 1992 | 191,000 hectares | -2.1% |
| 1993 | 190,000 hectares | -0.5% |
| 1994 | 190,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 190,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 190,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 191,000 hectares | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 191,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 191,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 191,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 192,000 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 192,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 192,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 192,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 192,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 191,000 hectares | -0.5% |
| 2007 | 191,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 191,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 192,000 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2010 | 193,000 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 193,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 193,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 193,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 194,000 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2015 | 194,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 194,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 194,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 195,000 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 195,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 195,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 195,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 195,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 195,000 hectares | +0.0% |
Eswatini compared with similar countries
- Eswatini's 195,000 hectares is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 2.82 million hectares, 7% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Eswatini's 195,000 hectares is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.21 million hectares, 6% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Cropland area in Eswatini 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | +27.0% | 141,000 hectares | 179,000 hectares |
| 1978 | +26.8% | 153,000 hectares | 194,000 hectares |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 142,778 hectares | 126,000 hectares | 156,000 hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 167,600 hectares | 152,000 hectares | 194,000 hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 169,100 hectares | 141,000 hectares | 204,000 hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 191,100 hectares | 190,000 hectares | 195,000 hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 191,600 hectares | 191,000 hectares | 192,000 hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 193,800 hectares | 193,000 hectares | 195,000 hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 195,000 hectares | 195,000 hectares | 195,000 hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Eswatini
More agriculture & rural data for Eswatini
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 5.08 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0641 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 263.26 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.4281 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.7328 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 6.4% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 6.4% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 6.2% (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.9% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cropland area in Eswatini?
- Cropland area in Eswatini was 195,000 hectares 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 cropland area recorded in Eswatini?
- The highest recorded value was 204,000 hectares in 1989.
- What is the lowest cropland area recorded in Eswatini?
- The lowest recorded value was 126,000 hectares in 1961.
- How does Eswatini rank for cropland area?
- Eswatini ranks 145th out of 224 countries with data for 2023.
- Is cropland area rising or falling in Eswatini?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Eswatini 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 Cropland area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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