Sorghum yields in Zambia
Zambia: Sorghum yields was 0.6332 tonnes per hectare in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
0.6332 tonnes per hectare
Change on year
up 27.4%
World rank
97th
of 115 countries
All-time high
0.9787 tonnes per hectare
in 2012
All-time low
0.2976 tonnes per hectare
in 2008
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Sorghum yields in Zambia, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes per hectare.
Analysis
The most recent figure for sorghum yields in Zambia is 0.6332 tonnes per hectare, measured in 2024.
The figure is up 27.4% on the previous year and down 23.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, sorghum yields in Zambia peaked at 0.9787 tonnes per hectare in 2012 and was at its lowest, 0.2976 tonnes per hectare, in 2008.
That places Zambia 97th out of 115 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Sorghum yields in Zambia, year by year
| Year | tonnes per hectare | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 0.597 tonnes per hectare | — |
| 1962 | 0.6029 tonnes per hectare | +1.0% |
| 1963 | 0.5942 tonnes per hectare | -1.4% |
| 1964 | 0.6143 tonnes per hectare | +3.4% |
| 1965 | 0.6286 tonnes per hectare | +2.3% |
| 1966 | 0.6528 tonnes per hectare | +3.8% |
| 1967 | 0.6575 tonnes per hectare | +0.7% |
| 1968 | 0.6575 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 0.6667 tonnes per hectare | +1.4% |
| 1970 | 0.6 tonnes per hectare | -10.0% |
| 1971 | 0.6779 tonnes per hectare | +13.0% |
| 1972 | 0.6302 tonnes per hectare | -7.0% |
| 1973 | 0.5777 tonnes per hectare | -8.3% |
| 1974 | 0.3857 tonnes per hectare | -33.2% |
| 1975 | 0.6106 tonnes per hectare | +58.3% |
| 1976 | 0.4982 tonnes per hectare | -18.4% |
| 1977 | 0.5189 tonnes per hectare | +4.2% |
| 1978 | 0.5412 tonnes per hectare | +4.3% |
| 1979 | 0.5 tonnes per hectare | -7.6% |
| 1980 | 0.5 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 0.6488 tonnes per hectare | +29.8% |
| 1982 | 0.652 tonnes per hectare | +0.5% |
| 1983 | 0.7555 tonnes per hectare | +15.9% |
| 1984 | 0.6871 tonnes per hectare | -9.1% |
| 1985 | 0.8152 tonnes per hectare | +18.6% |
| 1986 | 0.7556 tonnes per hectare | -7.3% |
| 1987 | 0.5516 tonnes per hectare | -27.0% |
| 1988 | 0.7614 tonnes per hectare | +38.0% |
| 1989 | 0.6491 tonnes per hectare | -14.7% |
| 1990 | 0.4042 tonnes per hectare | -37.7% |
| 1991 | 0.6587 tonnes per hectare | +63.0% |
| 1992 | 0.3226 tonnes per hectare | -51.0% |
| 1993 | 0.7613 tonnes per hectare | +136.0% |
| 1994 | 0.6348 tonnes per hectare | -16.6% |
| 1995 | 0.6571 tonnes per hectare | +3.5% |
| 1996 | 0.745 tonnes per hectare | +13.4% |
| 1997 | 0.6877 tonnes per hectare | -7.7% |
| 1998 | 0.7082 tonnes per hectare | +3.0% |
| 1999 | 0.6954 tonnes per hectare | -1.8% |
| 2000 | 0.77 tonnes per hectare | +10.7% |
| 2001 | 0.7713 tonnes per hectare | +0.2% |
| 2002 | 0.7714 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 0.6692 tonnes per hectare | -13.2% |
| 2004 | 0.5797 tonnes per hectare | -13.4% |
| 2005 | 0.8588 tonnes per hectare | +48.1% |
| 2006 | 0.6572 tonnes per hectare | -23.5% |
| 2007 | 0.6589 tonnes per hectare | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 0.2976 tonnes per hectare | -54.8% |
| 2009 | 0.6777 tonnes per hectare | +127.7% |
| 2010 | 0.9593 tonnes per hectare | +41.6% |
| 2011 | 0.8223 tonnes per hectare | -14.3% |
| 2012 | 0.9787 tonnes per hectare | +19.0% |
| 2013 | 0.959 tonnes per hectare | -2.0% |
| 2014 | 0.8234 tonnes per hectare | -14.1% |
| 2015 | 0.8043 tonnes per hectare | -2.3% |
| 2016 | 0.5288 tonnes per hectare | -34.3% |
| 2017 | 0.6311 tonnes per hectare | +19.3% |
| 2018 | 0.6513 tonnes per hectare | +3.2% |
| 2019 | 0.8044 tonnes per hectare | +23.5% |
| 2020 | 0.5681 tonnes per hectare | -29.4% |
| 2021 | 0.5764 tonnes per hectare | +1.5% |
| 2022 | 0.7254 tonnes per hectare | +25.9% |
| 2023 | 0.4972 tonnes per hectare | -31.5% |
| 2024 | 0.6332 tonnes per hectare | +27.4% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 0.6332 tonnes per hectare is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 1.09 tonnes per hectare, 58% of the median. (35 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 0.6332 tonnes per hectare is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.9424 tonnes per hectare, 67% of the median. (39 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Sorghum yields in Zambia 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | +136.0% | 0.3226 tonnes per hectare | 0.7613 tonnes per hectare |
| 2009 | +127.7% | 0.2976 tonnes per hectare | 0.6777 tonnes per hectare |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.6302 tonnes per hectare | 0.5942 tonnes per hectare | 0.6667 tonnes per hectare | 9 |
| 1970s | 0.554 tonnes per hectare | 0.3857 tonnes per hectare | 0.6779 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.6776 tonnes per hectare | 0.5 tonnes per hectare | 0.8152 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.6275 tonnes per hectare | 0.3226 tonnes per hectare | 0.7613 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.6712 tonnes per hectare | 0.2976 tonnes per hectare | 0.8588 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.7963 tonnes per hectare | 0.5288 tonnes per hectare | 0.9787 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.6001 tonnes per hectare | 0.4972 tonnes per hectare | 0.7254 tonnes per hectare | 5 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
- 94 Uganda 0.7031 tonnes per hectare compare
- 95 Democratic Republic of Congo 0.693 tonnes per hectare compare
- 96 Cote d'Ivoire 0.6649 tonnes per hectare compare
- 98 Sudan 0.6327 tonnes per hectare compare
- 99 Mozambique 0.6066 tonnes per hectare compare
- 100 Burundi 0.603 tonnes per hectare compare
More agriculture & rural data for Zambia
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 65.37 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0411 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 54.11 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.97 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0004 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5408 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 4.1% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 4.1% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.4% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.7% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is sorghum yields in Zambia?
- Sorghum yields in Zambia was 0.6332 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 sorghum yields recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 0.9787 tonnes per hectare in 2012.
- What is the lowest sorghum yields recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.2976 tonnes per hectare in 2008.
- How does Zambia rank for sorghum yields?
- Zambia ranks 97th out of 115 countries with data for 2024.
- Is sorghum yields rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 23.1%. 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 Sorghum yields. 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).
About this data
Yield is the amount produced per unit of land used, measured in tonnes per hectare.