Share of land area used for arable agriculture in Benin
Benin: Share of land area used for arable agriculture was 31.4% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Share of land area used for arable agriculture in Benin, 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
The most recent figure for share of land area used for arable agriculture in Benin is 31.4%, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 31.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of land area used for arable agriculture in Benin peaked at 31.4% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 8.2%, in 1961.
That places Benin 27th out of 206 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
Share of land area used for arable agriculture in Benin, year by year
| Year | % of land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 8.2% | — |
| 1962 | 8.3% | +2.2% |
| 1963 | 8.5% | +2.1% |
| 1964 | 8.7% | +2.1% |
| 1965 | 8.9% | +2.0% |
| 1966 | 9.1% | +3.0% |
| 1967 | 9.5% | +3.9% |
| 1968 | 9.8% | +2.8% |
| 1969 | 10.5% | +7.3% |
| 1970 | 10.6% | +1.7% |
| 1971 | 11.1% | +4.2% |
| 1972 | 11.4% | +2.4% |
| 1973 | 11.5% | +1.6% |
| 1974 | 11.8% | +2.3% |
| 1975 | 12.1% | +3.0% |
| 1976 | 12.4% | +2.2% |
| 1977 | 12.7% | +2.1% |
| 1978 | 12.9% | +1.4% |
| 1979 | 13.0% | +1.4% |
| 1980 | 13.3% | +2.0% |
| 1981 | 13.6% | +2.0% |
| 1982 | 13.7% | +1.3% |
| 1983 | 13.8% | +0.6% |
| 1984 | 13.9% | +0.6% |
| 1985 | 14.0% | +0.6% |
| 1986 | 14.1% | +0.6% |
| 1987 | 14.2% | +0.6% |
| 1988 | 14.3% | +0.6% |
| 1989 | 14.4% | +0.6% |
| 1990 | 14.3% | -0.3% |
| 1991 | 14.4% | +0.3% |
| 1992 | 14.5% | +0.6% |
| 1993 | 14.6% | +1.2% |
| 1994 | 15.1% | +3.0% |
| 1995 | 15.9% | +5.3% |
| 1996 | 17.3% | +8.9% |
| 1997 | 18.6% | +7.7% |
| 1998 | 20.0% | +7.1% |
| 1999 | 20.4% | +2.2% |
| 2000 | 21.1% | +3.5% |
| 2001 | 21.7% | +2.9% |
| 2002 | 22.6% | +4.1% |
| 2003 | 23.5% | +3.9% |
| 2004 | 23.5% | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 23.5% | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 22.2% | -5.8% |
| 2007 | 22.2% | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 22.2% | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 22.2% | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 22.2% | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 22.2% | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 23.1% | +4.0% |
| 2013 | 23.9% | +3.8% |
| 2014 | 23.9% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 23.9% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 24.8% | +3.7% |
| 2017 | 26.5% | +6.9% |
| 2018 | 30.3% | +14.1% |
| 2019 | 31.4% | +3.6% |
| 2020 | 29.5% | -5.8% |
| 2021 | 30.9% | +4.7% |
| 2022 | 31.4% | +1.7% |
| 2023 | 31.4% | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 9.0% | 8.2% | 10.5% | 9 |
| 1970s | 12.0% | 10.6% | 13.0% | 10 |
| 1980s | 13.9% | 13.3% | 14.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 16.5% | 14.3% | 20.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 22.5% | 21.1% | 23.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 25.2% | 22.2% | 31.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 30.8% | 29.5% | 31.4% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Benin
More agriculture & rural data for Benin
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 8.16 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.2292 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 380.06 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.6697 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.4664 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 22.9% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 22.9% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 52.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.8% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of land area used for arable agriculture in Benin?
- Share of land area used for arable agriculture in Benin was 31.4% 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 arable agriculture recorded in Benin?
- The highest recorded value was 31.4% in 2022.
- What is the lowest share of land area used for arable agriculture recorded in Benin?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.2% in 1961.
- How does Benin rank for share of land area used for arable agriculture?
- Benin ranks 27th out of 206 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of land area used for arable agriculture rising or falling in Benin?
- Over the last ten years it is up 31.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Benin 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 arable 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 arable agriculture, measured as a percentage of total land area. Arable land includes land defined by the FAO as land under temporary crops (double-cropped areas are counted once), temporary meadows for mowing or for pasture, land under market or kitchen gardens, and land temporarily fallow.