Cropland area in Zambia
Zambia: Cropland area was 3.84 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
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 67th out of 219 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.
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 1.19 billion current US$ (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 4.1% (2025)
- Rural population 11.85 million (2025)
- Rural population growth 1.9% (2025)
- Rural population 54.1% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.7% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.4% (2024)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 4.1% (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 4.1% (2025)
- Land under cereal production 1.56 million hectares (2023)
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 67th out of 219 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
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).