FAO projections of arable land in Kenya
Kenya: FAO projections of arable land was 7.47 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
7.47 million hectares
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
44th
of 224 countries
All-time high
7.47 million hectares
in 2023
All-time low
3.73 million hectares
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023
FAO projections of arable land in Kenya, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
The most recent figure for fao projections of arable land in Kenya is 7.47 million hectares, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 6.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fao projections of arable land in Kenya peaked at 7.47 million hectares in 2023 and was at its lowest, 3.73 million hectares, in 1961.
Kenya ranks 44th of 224 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
FAO projections of arable land in Kenya, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 3.73 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 3.74 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1963 | 3.74 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1964 | 3.75 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1965 | 3.76 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1966 | 3.77 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1967 | 3.78 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1968 | 3.78 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1969 | 3.79 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1970 | 3.80 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1971 | 3.81 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1972 | 3.82 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1973 | 3.83 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1974 | 3.83 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1975 | 4.27 million hectares | +11.4% |
| 1976 | 4.28 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1977 | 4.28 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 4.16 million hectares | -2.8% |
| 1979 | 4.17 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1980 | 4.17 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1981 | 4.18 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1982 | 4.19 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1983 | 4.20 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1984 | 4.13 million hectares | -1.6% |
| 1985 | 4.99 million hectares | +20.7% |
| 1986 | 5.02 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 1987 | 5.09 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 1988 | 5.32 million hectares | +4.6% |
| 1989 | 5.72 million hectares | +7.5% |
| 1990 | 5.45 million hectares | -4.8% |
| 1991 | 5.56 million hectares | +2.1% |
| 1992 | 5.77 million hectares | +3.7% |
| 1993 | 5.54 million hectares | -3.9% |
| 1994 | 5.94 million hectares | +7.2% |
| 1995 | 5.94 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1996 | 5.18 million hectares | -12.8% |
| 1997 | 5.33 million hectares | +2.9% |
| 1998 | 5.20 million hectares | -2.4% |
| 1999 | 5.63 million hectares | +8.2% |
| 2000 | 5.43 million hectares | -3.5% |
| 2001 | 5.54 million hectares | +2.0% |
| 2002 | 5.52 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 2003 | 5.57 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 2004 | 5.69 million hectares | +2.1% |
| 2005 | 5.70 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 5.75 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 2007 | 5.77 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2008 | 5.79 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2009 | 6.01 million hectares | +3.8% |
| 2010 | 6.09 million hectares | +1.3% |
| 2011 | 6.63 million hectares | +8.9% |
| 2012 | 6.97 million hectares | +5.1% |
| 2013 | 7.04 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 2014 | 7.01 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 7.00 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2016 | 7.16 million hectares | +2.2% |
| 2017 | 6.83 million hectares | -4.5% |
| 2018 | 7.29 million hectares | +6.7% |
| 2019 | 7.37 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 2020 | 7.39 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 7.40 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2022 | 7.44 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2023 | 7.47 million hectares | +0.3% |
Kenya compared with similar countries
- Kenya's 7.47 million hectares is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 2.82 million hectares, 2.6× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Kenya's 7.47 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.21 million hectares, 2.3× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 3.76 million hectares | 3.73 million hectares | 3.79 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 4.02 million hectares | 3.80 million hectares | 4.28 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.70 million hectares | 4.13 million hectares | 5.72 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.55 million hectares | 5.18 million hectares | 5.94 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.68 million hectares | 5.43 million hectares | 6.01 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.94 million hectares | 6.09 million hectares | 7.37 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.42 million hectares | 7.39 million hectares | 7.47 million hectares | 4 |
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 fao projections of arable land in Kenya?
- Fao projections of arable land in Kenya was 7.47 million hectares in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest fao projections of arable land recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 7.47 million hectares in 2023.
- What is the lowest fao projections of arable land recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.73 million hectares in 1961.
- How does Kenya rank for fao projections of arable land?
- Kenya ranks 44th out of 224 countries with data for 2023.
- Is fao projections of arable land rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Kenya 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 FAO projections of arable land. 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
Land allocated to arable production or permanent crops, measured in hectares. Values from 2030 onwards are FAO's 2018 projections under three different scenarios.