Share of land area used for agriculture in Jamaica
Jamaica: Share of land area used for agriculture was 38.5% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Share of land area used for agriculture in Jamaica, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of land area.
Analysis
Jamaica recorded 38.5% for share of land area used for agriculture in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of land area used for agriculture in Jamaica peaked at 49.4% in 1962 and was at its lowest, 38.5%, in 2015.
That places Jamaica 102nd out of 209 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Share of land area used for agriculture in Jamaica, year by year
| Year | % of land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 49.2% | — |
| 1962 | 49.4% | +0.4% |
| 1963 | 49.4% | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 49.2% | -0.4% |
| 1965 | 46.8% | -4.9% |
| 1966 | 47.7% | +2.0% |
| 1967 | 47.7% | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 47.7% | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 47.7% | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 46.8% | -1.9% |
| 1971 | 46.8% | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 46.8% | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 46.8% | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 46.8% | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 46.8% | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 46.8% | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 46.8% | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 46.8% | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 45.9% | -2.0% |
| 1980 | 45.9% | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 45.9% | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 45.0% | -2.0% |
| 1983 | 44.0% | -2.1% |
| 1984 | 44.0% | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 44.0% | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 44.0% | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 44.0% | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 44.0% | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 44.0% | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 44.0% | -0.2% |
| 1991 | 44.0% | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 44.0% | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 46.4% | +5.7% |
| 1994 | 46.2% | -0.6% |
| 1995 | 45.9% | -0.6% |
| 1996 | 45.6% | -0.6% |
| 1997 | 45.2% | -1.0% |
| 1998 | 44.7% | -1.0% |
| 1999 | 44.5% | -0.4% |
| 2000 | 44.2% | -0.6% |
| 2001 | 44.2% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 43.8% | -1.0% |
| 2003 | 43.8% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 43.6% | -0.4% |
| 2005 | 43.1% | -1.1% |
| 2006 | 43.1% | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 42.8% | -0.6% |
| 2008 | 41.5% | -3.2% |
| 2009 | 41.2% | -0.7% |
| 2010 | 38.9% | -5.5% |
| 2011 | 38.8% | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 38.8% | -0.2% |
| 2013 | 38.7% | -0.2% |
| 2014 | 38.6% | -0.2% |
| 2015 | 38.5% | -0.2% |
| 2016 | 38.5% | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 38.5% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 38.5% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 38.5% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 38.5% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 38.5% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 38.5% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 38.5% | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 48.3% | 46.8% | 49.4% | 9 |
| 1970s | 46.7% | 45.9% | 46.8% | 10 |
| 1980s | 44.5% | 44.0% | 45.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 45.0% | 44.0% | 46.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 43.1% | 41.2% | 44.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 38.6% | 38.5% | 38.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 38.5% | 38.5% | 38.5% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Jamaica
- 99 Viet Nam 39.2% compare
- 100 Marshall Islands 38.9% compare
- 101 Mauritania 38.5% compare
- 103 San Marino 38.3% compare
- 104 Albania 38.1% compare
- 105 Slovakia 38.0% compare
More agriculture & rural data for Jamaica
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 13.16 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0874 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 699.7 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -1.28 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.4057 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 8.7% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 8.7% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.1% (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.9% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of land area used for agriculture in Jamaica?
- Share of land area used for agriculture in Jamaica was 38.5% in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of land area used for agriculture recorded in Jamaica?
- The highest recorded value was 49.4% in 1962.
- What is the lowest share of land area used for agriculture recorded in Jamaica?
- The lowest recorded value was 38.5% in 2015.
- How does Jamaica rank for share of land area used for agriculture?
- Jamaica ranks 102nd out of 209 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of land area used for agriculture rising or falling in Jamaica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Jamaica data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of land area used for agriculture. 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).
About this data
The share of land area used for agriculture, measured as a percentage of total land area. Agricultural land refers to the share of land area that is arable, under permanent crops, and under permanent pastures.