Rice yields in Zambia
Zambia: Rice yields was 1.06 tonnes per hectare in 2024. ▲ Rising
Rice yields in Zambia, 1968–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes per hectare.
Analysis
In 2024, rice yields in Zambia stood at 1.06 tonnes per hectare.
The figure is down 16.4% on the previous year and down 29.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rice yields in Zambia peaked at 1.8 tonnes per hectare in 2011 and was at its lowest, 0.393 tonnes per hectare, in 1968.
That places Zambia 114th out of 123 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 57 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.4026 tonnes per hectare | 0.393 tonnes per hectare | 0.4121 tonnes per hectare | 2 |
| 1970s | 0.7306 tonnes per hectare | 0.4079 tonnes per hectare | 1.08 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.9164 tonnes per hectare | 0.4339 tonnes per hectare | 1.37 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.9738 tonnes per hectare | 0.5764 tonnes per hectare | 1.34 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.37 tonnes per hectare | 0.9726 tonnes per hectare | 1.77 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.47 tonnes per hectare | 1.2 tonnes per hectare | 1.8 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.36 tonnes per hectare | 1.06 tonnes per hectare | 1.57 tonnes per hectare | 5 |
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 rice yields in Zambia?
- Rice yields in Zambia was 1.06 tonnes per hectare 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 rice yields recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 1.8 tonnes per hectare in 2011.
- What is the lowest rice yields recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.393 tonnes per hectare in 1968.
- How does Zambia rank for rice yields?
- Zambia ranks 114th out of 123 countries with data for 2024.
- Is rice yields rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 29.1%. 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 Rice yields. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 57 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Yield is the amount produced per unit of land used, measured in tonnes per hectare.