Sweet potatoes — Area harvested in Southern Africa

Southern Africa: Sweet potatoes — Area harvested was 28,827 ha in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
28,827 ha
Change on year
down 5.3%
Rank
19th
of 26 groups
All-time high
36,090 ha
in 2022
All-time low
13,485 ha
in 1983
Years of data
64
1961–2024

Sweet potatoes — Area harvested in Southern Africa, 1961–2024

010.0k20.0k30.0k40.0k196119922024

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in ha.

Analysis

In 2024, sweet potatoes — area harvested in Southern Africa stood at 28,827 ha.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 5.3% on the previous year and up 27.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, sweet potatoes — area harvested in Southern Africa peaked at 36,090 ha in 2022 and was at its lowest, 13,485 ha, in 1983.

Southern Africa ranks 19th of 26 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.

Sweet potatoes — Area harvested in Southern Africa, year by year

Annual values for Sweet potatoes — Area harvested in Southern Africa, 1961 to 2024.
Year ha Change
1961 15,540 ha
1962 15,600 ha +0.4%
1963 16,600 ha +6.4%
1964 16,800 ha +1.2%
1965 16,800 ha +0.0%
1966 16,800 ha +0.0%
1967 16,800 ha +0.0%
1968 15,900 ha -5.4%
1969 16,000 ha +0.6%
1970 15,000 ha -6.2%
1971 14,800 ha -1.3%
1972 14,800 ha +0.0%
1973 14,200 ha -4.1%
1974 14,500 ha +2.1%
1975 14,493 ha -0.0%
1976 14,803 ha +2.1%
1977 13,550 ha -8.5%
1978 17,500 ha +29.2%
1979 18,000 ha +2.9%
1980 17,200 ha -4.4%
1981 14,063 ha -18.2%
1982 13,910 ha -1.1%
1983 13,485 ha -3.1%
1984 16,314 ha +21.0%
1985 15,988 ha -2.0%
1986 16,000 ha +0.1%
1987 17,500 ha +9.4%
1988 18,213 ha +4.1%
1989 16,945 ha -7.0%
1990 17,426 ha +2.8%
1991 18,000 ha +3.3%
1992 17,117 ha -4.9%
1993 18,800 ha +9.8%
1994 19,577 ha +4.1%
1995 16,817 ha -14.1%
1996 15,827 ha -5.9%
1997 16,850 ha +6.5%
1998 17,572 ha +4.3%
1999 16,039 ha -8.7%
2000 16,118 ha +0.5%
2001 17,501 ha +8.6%
2002 16,352 ha -6.6%
2003 15,900 ha -2.8%
2004 17,370 ha +9.2%
2005 17,580 ha +1.2%
2006 16,300 ha -7.3%
2007 16,837 ha +3.3%
2008 17,773 ha +5.6%
2009 22,358 ha +25.8%
2010 22,704 ha +1.5%
2011 19,548 ha -13.9%
2012 19,726 ha +0.9%
2013 23,234 ha +17.8%
2014 22,639 ha -2.6%
2015 23,746 ha +4.9%
2016 22,864 ha -3.7%
2017 27,664 ha +21.0%
2018 32,366 ha +17.0%
2019 34,832 ha +7.6%
2020 32,541 ha -6.6%
2021 31,774 ha -2.4%
2022 36,090 ha +13.6%
2023 30,453 ha -15.6%
2024 28,827 ha -5.3%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 16,316 ha 15,540 ha 16,800 ha 9
1970s 15,165 ha 13,550 ha 18,000 ha 10
1980s 15,962 ha 13,485 ha 18,213 ha 10
1990s 17,402 ha 15,827 ha 19,577 ha 10
2000s 17,409 ha 15,900 ha 22,358 ha 10
2010s 24,932 ha 19,548 ha 34,832 ha 10
2020s 31,937 ha 28,827 ha 36,090 ha 5

Countries ranked near Southern Africa

  1. 16 Ghana 78,611 ha compare
  2. 17 Indonesia 68,630 ha compare
  3. 18 Kenya 68,449 ha compare
  4. 19 Brazil 65,178 ha compare
  5. 20 Haiti 47,913 ha compare
  6. 21 Ethiopia 41,686 ha compare
  7. 22 Sudan 40,036 ha compare

See the full ranking of 155 places →

More agriculture & rural data for Southern Africa

All data for Southern Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is sweet potatoes — area harvested in Southern Africa?
Sweet potatoes — area harvested in Southern Africa was 28,827 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest sweet potatoes — area harvested recorded in Southern Africa?
The highest recorded value was 36,090 ha in 2022.
What is the lowest sweet potatoes — area harvested recorded in Southern Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 13,485 ha in 1983.
How does Southern Africa rank for sweet potatoes — area harvested?
Southern Africa ranks 19th out of 26 groups with data for 2024.
Is sweet potatoes — area harvested rising or falling in Southern Africa?
Over the last ten years it is up 27.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Southern Africa data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Sweet potatoes — Area harvested. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Sweet potatoes — Area harvested in Southern Africa. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 29 August 2026, from https://agriculture.statizoid.com/stat/sweet-potatoes-area-harvested/southern-africa/

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About this data

Indicator
Sweet potatoes — Area harvested
Unit
ha
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
155 places, 8,909 data points, 1961–2024
Last refreshed

Crop and livestock statistics are recorded for 278 products, covering the following categories: 1) CROPS PRIMARY: Cereals, Citrus Fruit, Fibre Crops, Fruit, Oil Crops, Oil Crops and Cakes in Oil Equivalent, Pulses, Roots and Tubers, Sugar Crops, Treenuts and Vegetables. Data are expressed in terms of area harvested, production quantity and yield. Cereals: Area and production data on cereals relate to crops harvested for dry grain only. Cereal crops harvested for hay or harvested green for food, feed or silage or used for grazing are therefore excluded. 2) CROPS PROCESSED: Beer of barley; Cotton lint; Cottonseed; Margarine, short; Molasses; Oil, coconut (copra); Oil, cottonseed; Oil, groundnut; Oil, linseed; Oil, maize; Oil, olive, virgin; Oil, palm; Oil, palm kernel; Oil, rapeseed; Oil, safflower; Oil, sesame; Oil, soybean; Oil, sunflower; Palm kernels; Sugar Raw Centrifugal; Wine. 3) LIVE ANIMALS: Animals live n.e.s.; Asses; Beehives; Buffaloes; Camelids, other; Camels; Cattle; Chickens; Ducks; Geese and guinea fowls; Goats; Horses; Mules; Pigeons, other birds; Pigs; Rabbits and hares; Rodents, other; Sheep; Turkeys. 4) LIVESTOCK PRIMARY: Beeswax; Eggs (various types); Hides buffalo, fresh; Hides, cattle, fresh; Honey, natural; Meat (ass, bird nes, buffalo, camel, cattle, chicken, duck, game, goat, goose and guinea fowl, horse, mule, Meat nes, meat other camelids, Meat other rodents, pig, rabbit, sheep, turkey); Milk (buffalo, camel, cow, goat, sheep); Offals, nes; Silk-worm cocoons, reelable; Skins (goat, sheep); Snails, not sea; Wool, greasy. 5) LIVESTOCK PROCESSED: Butter (of milk from sheep, goat, buffalo, cow); Cheese (of milk from goat, buffalo, sheep, cow milk); Cheese of skimmed cow milk; Cream fresh; Ghee (cow and buffalo milk); Lard; Milk (dry buttermilk, skimmed condensed, skimmed cow, skimmed dried, skimmed evaporated, whole condensed, whole dried, whole evaporated); Silk raw; Tallow; Whey (condensed and dry); Yoghurt.