Cropland area in Lesotho
Lesotho: Cropland area was 360,748 hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Cropland area in Lesotho, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
The most recent figure for cropland area in Lesotho is 360,748 hectares, measured in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 31.0% on the previous year and up 43.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cropland area in Lesotho peaked at 433,300 hectares in 2018 and was at its lowest, 154,400 hectares, in 2019.
Lesotho ranks 138th of 219 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 361,222 hectares | 356,000 hectares | 368,000 hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 344,200 hectares | 292,000 hectares | 376,000 hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 305,500 hectares | 287,000 hectares | 343,000 hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 328,000 hectares | 321,000 hectares | 336,000 hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 325,400 hectares | 304,000 hectares | 362,000 hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 303,640 hectares | 154,400 hectares | 433,300 hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 303,737 hectares | 229,400 hectares | 360,748 hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More agriculture & rural data for Lesotho
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 166.92 million current US$ (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 6.5% (2025)
- Rural population 1.31 million (2025)
- Rural population growth -0.7% (2025)
- Rural population 55.3% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.0% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 5.1% (2024)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 6.5% (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 6.5% (2025)
- Land under cereal production 177,933 hectares (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cropland area in Lesotho?
- Cropland area in Lesotho was 360,748 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 Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 433,300 hectares in 2018.
- What is the lowest cropland area recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 154,400 hectares in 2019.
- How does Lesotho rank for cropland area?
- Lesotho ranks 138th out of 219 countries with data for 2023.
- Is cropland area rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is up 43.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Lesotho 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
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).