Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Kenya
Kenya: Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture was 34,690 metric tons in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Kenya, 1960–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in metric tons.
Analysis
The most recent figure for seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Kenya is 34,690 metric tons, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 40.3% on the previous year and up 41.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Kenya peaked at 58,078 metric tons in 2023 and was at its lowest, 150 metric tons, in 1975.
Kenya ranks 51st of 215 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Kenya, year by year
| Year | metric tons | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 380 metric tons | — |
| 1961 | 410 metric tons | +7.9% |
| 1962 | 360 metric tons | -12.2% |
| 1963 | 380 metric tons | +5.6% |
| 1964 | 430 metric tons | +13.2% |
| 1965 | 399 metric tons | -7.2% |
| 1966 | 370 metric tons | -7.3% |
| 1967 | 360 metric tons | -2.7% |
| 1968 | 317 metric tons | -11.9% |
| 1969 | 293 metric tons | -7.6% |
| 1970 | 240 metric tons | -18.1% |
| 1971 | 220 metric tons | -8.3% |
| 1972 | 170 metric tons | -22.7% |
| 1973 | 180 metric tons | +5.9% |
| 1974 | 160 metric tons | -11.1% |
| 1975 | 150 metric tons | -6.2% |
| 1976 | 160 metric tons | +6.7% |
| 1977 | 160 metric tons | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 180 metric tons | +12.5% |
| 1979 | 160 metric tons | -11.1% |
| 1980 | 160 metric tons | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 160 metric tons | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 195 metric tons | +21.9% |
| 1983 | 201 metric tons | +3.1% |
| 1984 | 207 metric tons | +3.0% |
| 1985 | 213 metric tons | +2.9% |
| 1986 | 224 metric tons | +5.2% |
| 1987 | 210 metric tons | -6.2% |
| 1988 | 561 metric tons | +167.1% |
| 1989 | 972 metric tons | +73.3% |
| 1990 | 1,236 metric tons | +27.2% |
| 1991 | 1,178 metric tons | -4.7% |
| 1992 | 1,136 metric tons | -3.6% |
| 1993 | 1,145 metric tons | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 1,385 metric tons | +21.0% |
| 1995 | 1,302 metric tons | -6.0% |
| 1996 | 579 metric tons | -55.5% |
| 1997 | 199 metric tons | -65.6% |
| 1998 | 153 metric tons | -23.1% |
| 1999 | 300 metric tons | +96.1% |
| 2000 | 512 metric tons | +70.7% |
| 2001 | 1,009 metric tons | +97.1% |
| 2002 | 798 metric tons | -20.9% |
| 2003 | 1,012 metric tons | +26.8% |
| 2004 | 1,035 metric tons | +2.3% |
| 2005 | 1,047 metric tons | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 1,012 metric tons | -3.3% |
| 2007 | 4,240 metric tons | +319.0% |
| 2008 | 4,452 metric tons | +5.0% |
| 2009 | 4,895 metric tons | +10.0% |
| 2010 | 12,194 metric tons | +149.1% |
| 2011 | 22,295 metric tons | +82.8% |
| 2012 | 21,888 metric tons | -1.8% |
| 2013 | 23,901 metric tons | +9.2% |
| 2014 | 24,498 metric tons | +2.5% |
| 2015 | 18,961 metric tons | -22.6% |
| 2016 | 15,310 metric tons | -19.3% |
| 2017 | 13,128 metric tons | -14.3% |
| 2018 | 16,957 metric tons | +29.2% |
| 2019 | 20,300 metric tons | +19.7% |
| 2020 | 24,803 metric tons | +22.2% |
| 2021 | 28,470 metric tons | +14.8% |
| 2022 | 28,941 metric tons | +1.7% |
| 2023 | 58,078 metric tons | +100.7% |
| 2024 | 34,690 metric tons | -40.3% |
Kenya compared with similar countries
- Kenya's 34,690 metric tons is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 9,636 metric tons, 3.6× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Kenya's 34,690 metric tons is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1,824 metric tons, 19.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Kenya 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | +319.0% | 1,012 metric tons | 4,240 metric tons |
| 1988 | +167.1% | 210 metric tons | 561 metric tons |
| 2010 | +149.1% | 4,895 metric tons | 12,194 metric tons |
| 2023 | +100.7% | 28,941 metric tons | 58,078 metric tons |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 369.9 metric tons | 293 metric tons | 430 metric tons | 10 |
| 1970s | 178 metric tons | 150 metric tons | 240 metric tons | 10 |
| 1980s | 310.3 metric tons | 160 metric tons | 972 metric tons | 10 |
| 1990s | 861.3 metric tons | 153 metric tons | 1,385 metric tons | 10 |
| 2000s | 2,001 metric tons | 512 metric tons | 4,895 metric tons | 10 |
| 2010s | 18,943 metric tons | 12,194 metric tons | 24,498 metric tons | 10 |
| 2020s | 34,996 metric tons | 24,803 metric tons | 58,078 metric tons | 5 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
More reference data data for Kenya
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5379 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 12.22 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 14.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.377 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 14.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 58.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 68.95 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.05 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Kenya?
- Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Kenya was 34,690 metric tons in 2024, 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 seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 58,078 metric tons in 2023.
- What is the lowest seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 150 metric tons in 1975.
- How does Kenya rank for seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture?
- Kenya ranks 51st out of 215 countries with data for 2024.
- Is seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is up 41.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Kenya 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 Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Aquaculture is the farming of aquatic organisms including fish, molluscs, crustaceans and aquatic plants. Capture fishery production is the volume of wild fish catches landed for all commercial, industrial, recreational and subsistence purposes.