What is the highest surface area recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?

The highest recorded value was 24.34 million sq. km in 2023.

What is the lowest surface area recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?

The lowest recorded value was 24.27 million sq. km in 1961.

How does Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) rank for surface area?

Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) ranks 18th out of 45 groups with data for 2023.

Is surface area rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?

Over the last ten years it is up 0.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.

Surface area in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)

Name: Surface area in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
Creator: FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
License: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)

Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income): Surface area was 24.34 million sq. km in 2023. ▬ Flat

Latest (2023)

24.34 million sq. km

Change on year

up 0.0%

Rank

18th

of 45 groups

All-time high

24.34 million sq. km

in 2023

All-time low

24.27 million sq. km

in 1961

Years of data

1961–2023

Surface area in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), 1961–2023

Source: FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in sq. km.

Analysis

Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) recorded 24.34 million sq. km for surface area in 2023. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, surface area in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) peaked at 24.34 million sq. km in 2023 and was at its lowest, 24.27 million sq. km, in 1961.

Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) ranks 18th of 45 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.

Surface area in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), year by year

Annual values for Surface area (sq. km) in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), 1961 to 2023.
Year	sq. km	Change
1961	24.27 million sq. km	—
1962	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1963	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1964	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1965	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1966	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1967	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1968	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1969	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1970	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1971	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1972	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1973	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1974	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1975	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1976	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1977	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1978	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1979	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1980	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1981	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1982	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1983	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1984	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1985	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1986	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1987	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1988	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1989	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1990	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1991	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1992	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1993	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1994	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1995	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1996	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1997	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1998	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
1999	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
2000	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
2001	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
2002	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
2003	24.27 million sq. km	+0.0%
2004	24.31 million sq. km	+0.1%
2005	24.31 million sq. km	+0.0%
2006	24.31 million sq. km	+0.0%
2007	24.31 million sq. km	-0.0%
2008	24.31 million sq. km	+0.0%
2009	24.31 million sq. km	+0.0%
2010	24.31 million sq. km	-0.0%
2011	24.31 million sq. km	+0.0%
2012	24.33 million sq. km	+0.1%
2013	24.33 million sq. km	-0.0%
2014	24.33 million sq. km	+0.0%
2015	24.33 million sq. km	+0.0%
2016	24.33 million sq. km	+0.0%
2017	24.33 million sq. km	-0.0%
2018	24.33 million sq. km	+0.0%
2019	24.33 million sq. km	-0.0%
2020	24.34 million sq. km	+0.0%
2021	24.34 million sq. km	+0.0%
2022	24.34 million sq. km	+0.0%
2023	24.34 million sq. km	+0.0%

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1960s	24.27 million sq. km	24.27 million sq. km	24.27 million sq. km	9
1970s	24.27 million sq. km	24.27 million sq. km	24.27 million sq. km	10
1980s	24.27 million sq. km	24.27 million sq. km	24.27 million sq. km	10
1990s	24.27 million sq. km	24.27 million sq. km	24.27 million sq. km	10
2000s	24.29 million sq. km	24.27 million sq. km	24.31 million sq. km	10
2010s	24.32 million sq. km	24.31 million sq. km	24.33 million sq. km	10
2020s	24.34 million sq. km	24.34 million sq. km	24.34 million sq. km	4

Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)

15 Sudan 1.88 million sq. km compare
16 Libya 1.76 million sq. km compare
17 Iran 1.75 million sq. km compare
18 Mongolia 1.56 million sq. km compare
19 Peru 1.29 million sq. km compare
20 Chad 1.28 million sq. km compare
21 Niger 1.27 million sq. km compare

See the full ranking of 263 places →

More agriculture & rural data for Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)

Rural population, per capita 0.5534 units per person (2025)
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 395.90 billion current US$ (2025)
Rural population 731.36 million (2025)
Rural population growth 1.5% (2025)
Rural population 55.3% (2025)
Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2024)
Agricultural raw materials exports 2.6% (2024)
Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1792 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Rural population, annual growth rate 1.53 % change on previous year (2025)

All data for Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) →

Frequently asked questions

What is surface area in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?: Surface area in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) was 24.34 million sq. km in 2023, according to FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
What is the highest surface area recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?: The highest recorded value was 24.34 million sq. km in 2023.
What is the lowest surface area recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?: The lowest recorded value was 24.27 million sq. km in 1961.
How does Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) rank for surface area?: Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) ranks 18th out of 45 groups with data for 2023.
Is surface area rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?: Over the last ten years it is up 0.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) data come from?: The figures come from FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Surface area (sq. km). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Surface area in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income). Statizoid, drawing on FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Retrieved 28 August 2026, from https://agriculture.statizoid.com/stat/surface-area-sq-km/sub-saharan-africa-excluding-high-income/

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About this data

Indicator: Surface area (sq. km)
Unit: sq. km
Source: FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage: 263 places, 16,395 data points, 1961–2023
Last refreshed: 20 August 2026

Surface area is a country's total area, including areas under inland bodies of water and some coastal waterways.