FAO projections of arable land in Malawi
Malawi: FAO projections of arable land was 4.20 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
4.20 million hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
63rd
of 224 countries
All-time high
4.20 million hectares
in 2021
All-time low
1.36 million hectares
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023
FAO projections of arable land in Malawi, 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 Malawi is 4.20 million hectares, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.
The figure is up 13.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fao projections of arable land in Malawi peaked at 4.20 million hectares in 2021 and was at its lowest, 1.36 million hectares, in 1961.
That places Malawi 63rd out of 224 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
FAO projections of arable land in Malawi, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 1.36 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 1.46 million hectares | +7.4% |
| 1963 | 1.51 million hectares | +3.4% |
| 1964 | 1.56 million hectares | +3.3% |
| 1965 | 1.76 million hectares | +13.0% |
| 1966 | 1.81 million hectares | +2.8% |
| 1967 | 1.76 million hectares | -2.6% |
| 1968 | 1.87 million hectares | +5.8% |
| 1969 | 1.92 million hectares | +2.7% |
| 1970 | 1.87 million hectares | -2.6% |
| 1971 | 2.02 million hectares | +8.0% |
| 1972 | 2.07 million hectares | +2.5% |
| 1973 | 2.12 million hectares | +2.4% |
| 1974 | 2.12 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1975 | 2.07 million hectares | -2.4% |
| 1976 | 2.07 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1977 | 2.08 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1978 | 2.13 million hectares | +2.6% |
| 1979 | 2.13 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1980 | 1.99 million hectares | -6.6% |
| 1981 | 2.09 million hectares | +5.0% |
| 1982 | 2.19 million hectares | +4.8% |
| 1983 | 2.10 million hectares | -4.1% |
| 1984 | 2.15 million hectares | +2.4% |
| 1985 | 2.17 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1986 | 2.27 million hectares | +4.6% |
| 1987 | 2.27 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1988 | 2.27 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1989 | 2.33 million hectares | +2.2% |
| 1990 | 2.38 million hectares | +2.3% |
| 1991 | 2.48 million hectares | +4.3% |
| 1992 | 2.43 million hectares | -2.0% |
| 1993 | 2.43 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 2.23 million hectares | -8.2% |
| 1995 | 2.43 million hectares | +9.0% |
| 1996 | 2.53 million hectares | +4.1% |
| 1997 | 2.58 million hectares | +2.0% |
| 1998 | 2.73 million hectares | +5.8% |
| 1999 | 2.83 million hectares | +3.7% |
| 2000 | 2.88 million hectares | +1.8% |
| 2001 | 2.98 million hectares | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 2.98 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 3.13 million hectares | +5.0% |
| 2004 | 3.13 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 3.33 million hectares | +6.4% |
| 2006 | 3.44 million hectares | +3.2% |
| 2007 | 3.44 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 3.58 million hectares | +4.4% |
| 2009 | 3.63 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 2010 | 3.63 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 3.63 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 3.63 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 3.69 million hectares | +1.7% |
| 2014 | 3.80 million hectares | +2.9% |
| 2015 | 3.86 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 2016 | 3.91 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 2017 | 3.97 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 2018 | 4.02 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 2019 | 4.08 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 2020 | 4.13 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 2021 | 4.20 million hectares | +1.6% |
| 2022 | 4.20 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 4.20 million hectares | +0.0% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 4.20 million hectares is above the median for low income countries, which is 3.60 million hectares, 1.2× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 4.20 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.21 million hectares, 1.3× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.67 million hectares | 1.36 million hectares | 1.92 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 2.07 million hectares | 1.87 million hectares | 2.13 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.18 million hectares | 1.99 million hectares | 2.33 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.50 million hectares | 2.23 million hectares | 2.83 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.25 million hectares | 2.88 million hectares | 3.63 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.82 million hectares | 3.63 million hectares | 4.08 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.18 million hectares | 4.13 million hectares | 4.20 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More reference data data for Malawi
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1596 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.09 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 3.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.3426 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 3.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5353 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.6012 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 4.92 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 16.7 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.87 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fao projections of arable land in Malawi?
- Fao projections of arable land in Malawi was 4.20 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 Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 4.20 million hectares in 2021.
- What is the lowest fao projections of arable land recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.36 million hectares in 1961.
- How does Malawi rank for fao projections of arable land?
- Malawi ranks 63rd out of 224 countries with data for 2023.
- Is fao projections of arable land rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malawi 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.