Number of poultry birds in Lesotho
Lesotho: Number of poultry birds was 534,000 animals in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
534,000 animals
Change on year
down 14.6%
World rank
175th
of 199 countries
All-time high
1.50 million animals
in 1995
All-time low
286,000 animals
in 2019
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Number of poultry birds in Lesotho, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in animals.
Analysis
In 2024, number of poultry birds in Lesotho stood at 534,000 animals.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 14.6% on the previous year and down 41.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of poultry birds in Lesotho peaked at 1.50 million animals in 1995 and was at its lowest, 286,000 animals, in 2019.
Lesotho ranks 175th of 199 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 64 years of available data.
Number of poultry birds in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | animals | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 635,000 animals | — |
| 1962 | 657,000 animals | +3.5% |
| 1963 | 677,000 animals | +3.0% |
| 1964 | 698,000 animals | +3.1% |
| 1965 | 720,000 animals | +3.2% |
| 1966 | 742,000 animals | +3.1% |
| 1967 | 765,000 animals | +3.1% |
| 1968 | 790,000 animals | +3.3% |
| 1969 | 815,000 animals | +3.2% |
| 1970 | 841,000 animals | +3.2% |
| 1971 | 830,000 animals | -1.3% |
| 1972 | 840,000 animals | +1.2% |
| 1973 | 850,000 animals | +1.2% |
| 1974 | 840,000 animals | -1.2% |
| 1975 | 830,000 animals | -1.2% |
| 1976 | 830,000 animals | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 812,000 animals | -2.2% |
| 1978 | 830,000 animals | +2.2% |
| 1979 | 826,000 animals | -0.5% |
| 1980 | 730,000 animals | -11.6% |
| 1981 | 815,000 animals | +11.6% |
| 1982 | 1.05 million animals | +29.1% |
| 1983 | 924,000 animals | -12.2% |
| 1984 | 714,000 animals | -22.7% |
| 1985 | 824,000 animals | +15.4% |
| 1986 | 900,000 animals | +9.2% |
| 1987 | 1.00 million animals | +11.1% |
| 1988 | 1.00 million animals | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 1.00 million animals | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 1.00 million animals | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 900,000 animals | -10.0% |
| 1992 | 800,000 animals | -11.1% |
| 1993 | 1.00 million animals | +25.0% |
| 1994 | 1.20 million animals | +20.0% |
| 1995 | 1.50 million animals | +25.0% |
| 1996 | 1.40 million animals | -6.7% |
| 1997 | 1.30 million animals | -7.1% |
| 1998 | 1.20 million animals | -7.7% |
| 1999 | 1.10 million animals | -8.3% |
| 2000 | 1.00 million animals | -9.1% |
| 2001 | 950,000 animals | -5.0% |
| 2002 | 1.00 million animals | +5.3% |
| 2003 | 900,000 animals | -10.0% |
| 2004 | 800,000 animals | -11.1% |
| 2005 | 900,000 animals | +12.5% |
| 2006 | 900,000 animals | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 893,000 animals | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 605,000 animals | -32.3% |
| 2009 | 771,000 animals | +27.4% |
| 2010 | 502,000 animals | -34.9% |
| 2011 | 485,000 animals | -3.4% |
| 2012 | 500,000 animals | +3.1% |
| 2013 | 367,000 animals | -26.6% |
| 2014 | 906,000 animals | +146.9% |
| 2015 | 522,000 animals | -42.4% |
| 2016 | 292,000 animals | -44.1% |
| 2017 | 433,000 animals | +48.3% |
| 2018 | 419,000 animals | -3.2% |
| 2019 | 286,000 animals | -31.7% |
| 2020 | 490,000 animals | +71.3% |
| 2021 | 752,000 animals | +53.5% |
| 2022 | 549,000 animals | -27.0% |
| 2023 | 625,000 animals | +13.8% |
| 2024 | 534,000 animals | -14.6% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 534,000 animals is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 37.36 million animals, 1% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 534,000 animals is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 19.07 million animals, 3% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Number of poultry birds in Lesotho 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | +146.9% | 367,000 animals | 906,000 animals |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 722,111 animals | 635,000 animals | 815,000 animals | 9 |
| 1970s | 832,900 animals | 812,000 animals | 850,000 animals | 10 |
| 1980s | 895,900 animals | 714,000 animals | 1.05 million animals | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.14 million animals | 800,000 animals | 1.50 million animals | 10 |
| 2000s | 871,900 animals | 605,000 animals | 1.00 million animals | 10 |
| 2010s | 471,200 animals | 286,000 animals | 906,000 animals | 10 |
| 2020s | 590,000 animals | 490,000 animals | 752,000 animals | 5 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
- 172 New Caledonia 618,000 animals compare
- 173 East Timor 571,000 animals compare
- 174 Comoros 551,000 animals compare
- 176 Saint Lucia 479,000 animals compare
- 177 Samoa 438,000 animals compare
- 178 Vanuatu 436,000 animals compare
More agriculture & rural data for Lesotho
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 5.38 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0649 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 70.63 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.6715 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0005 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5533 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 6.5% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 6.5% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 5.1% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.0% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of poultry birds in Lesotho?
- Number of poultry birds in Lesotho was 534,000 animals in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of poultry birds recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 1.50 million animals in 1995.
- What is the lowest number of poultry birds recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 286,000 animals in 2019.
- How does Lesotho rank for number of poultry birds?
- Lesotho ranks 175th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is number of poultry birds rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 41.1%. 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 Number of poultry birds. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).