Cropland area in Zambia
Zambia: Cropland area was 3.84 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
3.84 million hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
68th
of 224 countries
All-time high
3.84 million hectares
in 2017
All-time low
2.32 million hectares
in 1979
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Cropland area in Zambia, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
Zambia recorded 3.84 million hectares for cropland area in 2023. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cropland area in Zambia peaked at 3.84 million hectares in 2017 and was at its lowest, 2.32 million hectares, in 1979.
That places Zambia 68th out of 224 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
Cropland area in Zambia, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 2.56 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 2.56 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1963 | 2.58 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 1964 | 2.61 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 1965 | 2.61 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1966 | 2.67 million hectares | +2.1% |
| 1967 | 2.68 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 1968 | 2.71 million hectares | +1.3% |
| 1969 | 2.74 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1970 | 2.77 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1971 | 2.90 million hectares | +4.7% |
| 1972 | 2.91 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 1973 | 2.92 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 1974 | 2.95 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 1975 | 2.94 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1976 | 2.92 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1977 | 2.89 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1978 | 2.73 million hectares | -5.5% |
| 1979 | 2.32 million hectares | -15.2% |
| 1980 | 2.35 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1981 | 2.40 million hectares | +2.4% |
| 1982 | 2.46 million hectares | +2.3% |
| 1983 | 2.52 million hectares | +2.3% |
| 1984 | 2.57 million hectares | +2.2% |
| 1985 | 2.63 million hectares | +2.2% |
| 1986 | 2.68 million hectares | +2.1% |
| 1987 | 2.74 million hectares | +2.1% |
| 1988 | 2.80 million hectares | +2.0% |
| 1989 | 2.91 million hectares | +4.0% |
| 1990 | 2.91 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 2.78 million hectares | -4.6% |
| 1992 | 2.80 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 1993 | 2.80 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1994 | 2.87 million hectares | +2.5% |
| 1995 | 2.87 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1996 | 2.87 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 2.87 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1998 | 2.87 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1999 | 2.87 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 2.88 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 2.75 million hectares | -4.2% |
| 2002 | 2.62 million hectares | -5.0% |
| 2003 | 2.91 million hectares | +11.2% |
| 2004 | 2.90 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 2005 | 2.76 million hectares | -4.7% |
| 2006 | 3.05 million hectares | +10.4% |
| 2007 | 2.98 million hectares | -2.1% |
| 2008 | 3.09 million hectares | +3.5% |
| 2009 | 3.59 million hectares | +16.2% |
| 2010 | 3.44 million hectares | -4.2% |
| 2011 | 3.64 million hectares | +5.8% |
| 2012 | 3.84 million hectares | +5.5% |
| 2013 | 3.74 million hectares | -2.6% |
| 2014 | 3.74 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 3.74 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 3.74 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 3.84 million hectares | +2.7% |
| 2018 | 3.84 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 3.84 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 3.84 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 3.84 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 3.84 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 3.84 million hectares | +0.0% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 3.84 million hectares is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 2.82 million hectares, 1.4× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 3.84 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.21 million hectares, 1.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2.64 million hectares | 2.56 million hectares | 2.74 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 2.83 million hectares | 2.32 million hectares | 2.95 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.61 million hectares | 2.35 million hectares | 2.91 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.85 million hectares | 2.78 million hectares | 2.91 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.95 million hectares | 2.62 million hectares | 3.59 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.74 million hectares | 3.44 million hectares | 3.84 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.84 million hectares | 3.84 million hectares | 3.84 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
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 cropland area in Zambia?
- Cropland area in Zambia was 3.84 million 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 Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 3.84 million hectares in 2017.
- What is the lowest cropland area recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.32 million hectares in 1979.
- How does Zambia rank for cropland area?
- Zambia ranks 68th out of 224 countries with data for 2023.
- Is cropland area rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.7%. 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 Cropland area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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