Nitrogen use efficiency in Malawi

Malawi: Nitrogen use efficiency was 55.8% in 2014. ▼ Falling

Latest (2014)
55.8%
Change on year
down 11.2%
World rank
89th
of 205 countries
All-time high
117.7%
in 1967
All-time low
35.6%
in 1992
Years of data
54
1961–2014

Nitrogen use efficiency in Malawi, 1961–2014

406080100120196119872014

Source: Lassaletta et al. (2014) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

Malawi recorded 55.8% for nitrogen use efficiency in 2014.

That represents a change of down 11.2% on the previous year and up 2.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, nitrogen use efficiency in Malawi peaked at 117.7% in 1967 and was at its lowest, 35.6%, in 1992.

Malawi ranks 89th of 205 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 54 years of available data.

Nitrogen use efficiency in Malawi, year by year

Annual values for Nitrogen use efficiency in Malawi, 1961 to 2014.
Year % Change
1961 112.1%
1962 115.1% +2.7%
1963 102.6% -10.9%
1964 112.3% +9.5%
1965 109.0% -3.0%
1966 107.8% -1.0%
1967 117.7% +9.1%
1968 104.6% -11.2%
1969 99.9% -4.5%
1970 86.0% -13.9%
1971 93.1% +8.2%
1972 95.8% +3.0%
1973 90.6% -5.4%
1974 103.5% +14.2%
1975 82.2% -20.6%
1976 74.9% -8.9%
1977 94.9% +26.7%
1978 82.4% -13.2%
1979 91.0% +10.4%
1980 70.0% -23.0%
1981 68.2% -2.6%
1982 73.6% +8.0%
1983 73.8% +0.3%
1984 77.1% +4.4%
1985 89.6% +16.3%
1986 72.7% -18.9%
1987 60.6% -16.6%
1988 71.5% +18.0%
1989 72.3% +1.0%
1990 69.3% -4.1%
1991 60.8% -12.3%
1992 35.6% -41.5%
1993 68.8% +93.4%
1994 93.7% +36.2%
1995 86.5% -7.7%
1996 80.7% -6.7%
1997 64.3% -20.3%
1998 77.3% +20.2%
1999 97.4% +26.1%
2000 94.5% -3.0%
2001 105.8% +12.0%
2002 55.2% -47.8%
2003 62.4% +13.2%
2004 54.6% -12.6%
2005 47.9% -12.3%
2006 62.8% +31.2%
2007 70.9% +12.9%
2008 59.7% -15.9%
2009 83.9% +40.7%
2010 67.2% -20.0%
2011 76.0% +13.2%
2012 69.0% -9.2%
2013 62.8% -8.9%
2014 55.8% -11.2%

Malawi compared with similar countries

  • Malawi's 55.8% is below the median for low income countries, which is 62.0%, 90% of the median. (24 countries reporting)
  • Malawi's 55.8% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 62.2%, 90% of the median. (45 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 109.0% 99.9% 117.7% 9
1970s 89.5% 74.9% 103.5% 10
1980s 73.0% 60.6% 89.6% 10
1990s 73.4% 35.6% 97.4% 10
2000s 69.8% 47.9% 105.8% 10
2010s 66.2% 55.8% 76.0% 5

Countries ranked near Malawi

  1. 86 Gambia 56.8% compare
  2. 87 Czechia 56.0% compare
  3. 88 Iran 56.0% compare
  4. 90 Morocco 55.2% compare
  5. 91 Tajikistan 54.4% compare
  6. 92 Sudan 53.3% compare

See the full ranking of 205 places →

More reference data data for Malawi

All data for Malawi →

Frequently asked questions

What is nitrogen use efficiency in Malawi?
Nitrogen use efficiency in Malawi was 55.8% in 2014, according to Lassaletta et al. (2014) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest nitrogen use efficiency recorded in Malawi?
The highest recorded value was 117.7% in 1967.
What is the lowest nitrogen use efficiency recorded in Malawi?
The lowest recorded value was 35.6% in 1992.
How does Malawi rank for nitrogen use efficiency?
Malawi ranks 89th out of 205 countries with data for 2014.
Is nitrogen use efficiency rising or falling in Malawi?
Over the last ten years it is up 2.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Malawi data come from?
The figures come from Lassaletta et al. (2014) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Nitrogen use efficiency. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Nitrogen use efficiency in Malawi. Statizoid, drawing on Lassaletta et al. (2014) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/nitrogen-use-efficiency/malawi/

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About this data

Indicator
Nitrogen use efficiency
Unit
%
Source
Lassaletta et al. (2014) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
205 places, 10,031 data points, 1961–2014
Last refreshed

Nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) is the ratio between nitrogen inputs and output. A NUE of 40% means that only 40% of nitrogen inputs are converted into nitrogen in the form of crops.