Corn: Yield gap in Malawi
Malawi: Corn: Yield gap was 3.4 tonnes per hectare in 2024. ▼ Falling
Corn: Yield gap in Malawi, 2000–2024
Source: Mueller et al. (2012); USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) (2026); Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes per hectare.
Analysis
The most recent figure for corn: yield gap in Malawi is 3.4 tonnes per hectare, measured in 2024.
The figure is down 1.1% on the previous year and up 10.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, corn: yield gap in Malawi peaked at 4.59 tonnes per hectare in 2005 and was at its lowest, 2.75 tonnes per hectare, in 2007.
That places Malawi 26th out of 115 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Corn: Yield gap in Malawi, year by year
| Year | tonnes per hectare | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 3.66 tonnes per hectare | — |
| 2001 | 4.22 tonnes per hectare | +15.3% |
| 2002 | 4.35 tonnes per hectare | +3.3% |
| 2003 | 4.17 tonnes per hectare | -4.1% |
| 2004 | 4.35 tonnes per hectare | +4.3% |
| 2005 | 4.59 tonnes per hectare | +5.4% |
| 2006 | 3.92 tonnes per hectare | -14.6% |
| 2007 | 2.75 tonnes per hectare | -29.9% |
| 2008 | 3.75 tonnes per hectare | +36.6% |
| 2009 | 3.17 tonnes per hectare | -15.4% |
| 2010 | 3.38 tonnes per hectare | +6.6% |
| 2011 | 3.19 tonnes per hectare | -5.7% |
| 2012 | 3.21 tonnes per hectare | +0.5% |
| 2013 | 3.23 tonnes per hectare | +0.7% |
| 2014 | 3.07 tonnes per hectare | -5.1% |
| 2015 | 3.74 tonnes per hectare | +22.1% |
| 2016 | 3.98 tonnes per hectare | +6.4% |
| 2017 | 3.39 tonnes per hectare | -14.9% |
| 2018 | 3.8 tonnes per hectare | +12.0% |
| 2019 | 3.44 tonnes per hectare | -9.4% |
| 2020 | 3.3 tonnes per hectare | -4.0% |
| 2021 | 2.94 tonnes per hectare | -11.1% |
| 2022 | 3.35 tonnes per hectare | +14.1% |
| 2023 | 3.44 tonnes per hectare | +2.6% |
| 2024 | 3.4 tonnes per hectare | -1.1% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 3.4 tonnes per hectare is above the median for low income countries, which is 2.55 tonnes per hectare, 1.3× the median. (17 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 3.4 tonnes per hectare is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 2.47 tonnes per hectare, 1.4× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3.89 tonnes per hectare | 2.75 tonnes per hectare | 4.59 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.44 tonnes per hectare | 3.07 tonnes per hectare | 3.98 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.29 tonnes per hectare | 2.94 tonnes per hectare | 3.44 tonnes per hectare | 5 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More agriculture & rural data for Malawi
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 24.6 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.3003 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 201.66 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 2.19 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0012 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.8241 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 30.0% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 30.0% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.7% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is corn: yield gap in Malawi?
- Corn: yield gap in Malawi was 3.4 tonnes per hectare in 2024, according to Mueller et al. (2012); USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) (2026); Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest corn: yield gap recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 4.59 tonnes per hectare in 2005.
- What is the lowest corn: yield gap recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.75 tonnes per hectare in 2007.
- How does Malawi rank for corn: yield gap?
- Malawi ranks 26th out of 115 countries with data for 2024.
- Is corn: yield gap rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from Mueller et al. (2012); USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) (2026); Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Corn: Yield gap. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Yield gaps are the difference between attainable yields and actual yields, measured in tonnes per hectare. Negative values have been replaced by zero, meaning that the attainable yield has been reached.