Yams production in Nigeria
Nigeria: Yams production was 65.32 million tonnes in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2024)
65.32 million tonnes
Change on year
up 4.7%
World rank
1st
of 63 countries
All-time high
65.32 million tonnes
in 2024
All-time low
3.50 million tonnes
in 1961
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Yams production in Nigeria, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
The most recent figure for yams production in Nigeria is 65.32 million tonnes, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 64 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 4.7% on the previous year and up 49.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, yams production in Nigeria peaked at 65.32 million tonnes in 2024 and was at its lowest, 3.50 million tonnes, in 1961.
That places Nigeria 1st out of 63 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Yams production in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 3.50 million tonnes | — |
| 1962 | 3.50 million tonnes | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 4.50 million tonnes | +28.6% |
| 1964 | 5.00 million tonnes | +11.1% |
| 1965 | 6.00 million tonnes | +20.0% |
| 1966 | 6.99 million tonnes | +16.4% |
| 1967 | 7.81 million tonnes | +11.7% |
| 1968 | 8.23 million tonnes | +5.5% |
| 1969 | 9.79 million tonnes | +18.9% |
| 1970 | 12.03 million tonnes | +23.0% |
| 1971 | 9.77 million tonnes | -18.8% |
| 1972 | 6.90 million tonnes | -29.3% |
| 1973 | 6.93 million tonnes | +0.5% |
| 1974 | 7.16 million tonnes | +3.2% |
| 1975 | 8.62 million tonnes | +20.4% |
| 1976 | 6.56 million tonnes | -24.0% |
| 1977 | 6.38 million tonnes | -2.7% |
| 1978 | 5.78 million tonnes | -9.3% |
| 1979 | 5.26 million tonnes | -9.1% |
| 1980 | 5.25 million tonnes | -0.2% |
| 1981 | 5.21 million tonnes | -0.7% |
| 1982 | 5.38 million tonnes | +3.3% |
| 1983 | 5.00 million tonnes | -7.2% |
| 1984 | 4.60 million tonnes | -8.0% |
| 1985 | 4.74 million tonnes | +3.0% |
| 1986 | 5.21 million tonnes | +9.9% |
| 1987 | 4.89 million tonnes | -6.2% |
| 1988 | 9.13 million tonnes | +86.9% |
| 1989 | 9.61 million tonnes | +5.2% |
| 1990 | 13.62 million tonnes | +41.8% |
| 1991 | 16.96 million tonnes | +24.5% |
| 1992 | 19.78 million tonnes | +16.7% |
| 1993 | 21.63 million tonnes | +9.4% |
| 1994 | 23.15 million tonnes | +7.0% |
| 1995 | 22.82 million tonnes | -1.4% |
| 1996 | 23.20 million tonnes | +1.7% |
| 1997 | 23.97 million tonnes | +3.3% |
| 1998 | 24.77 million tonnes | +3.3% |
| 1999 | 25.87 million tonnes | +4.5% |
| 2000 | 26.20 million tonnes | +1.3% |
| 2001 | 26.23 million tonnes | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 27.91 million tonnes | +6.4% |
| 2003 | 29.70 million tonnes | +6.4% |
| 2004 | 31.78 million tonnes | +7.0% |
| 2005 | 34.00 million tonnes | +7.0% |
| 2006 | 36.72 million tonnes | +8.0% |
| 2007 | 31.14 million tonnes | -15.2% |
| 2008 | 35.02 million tonnes | +12.5% |
| 2009 | 29.09 million tonnes | -16.9% |
| 2010 | 37.33 million tonnes | +28.3% |
| 2011 | 33.13 million tonnes | -11.2% |
| 2012 | 32.32 million tonnes | -2.5% |
| 2013 | 35.62 million tonnes | +10.2% |
| 2014 | 43.71 million tonnes | +22.7% |
| 2015 | 44.10 million tonnes | +0.9% |
| 2016 | 48.98 million tonnes | +11.1% |
| 2017 | 49.52 million tonnes | +1.1% |
| 2018 | 55.36 million tonnes | +11.8% |
| 2019 | 52.91 million tonnes | -4.4% |
| 2020 | 56.35 million tonnes | +6.5% |
| 2021 | 59.88 million tonnes | +6.3% |
| 2022 | 61.10 million tonnes | +2.0% |
| 2023 | 62.38 million tonnes | +2.1% |
| 2024 | 65.32 million tonnes | +4.7% |
Nigeria compared with similar countries
- Nigeria's 65.32 million tonnes is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 55,772 tonnes, 1171.2× the median. (21 countries reporting)
- Nigeria's 65.32 million tonnes is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 121,999 tonnes, 535.4× the median. (26 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Yams production in Nigeria 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | +86.9% | 4.89 million tonnes | 9.13 million tonnes |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 6.15 million tonnes | 3.50 million tonnes | 9.79 million tonnes | 9 |
| 1970s | 7.54 million tonnes | 5.26 million tonnes | 12.03 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.90 million tonnes | 4.60 million tonnes | 9.61 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1990s | 21.58 million tonnes | 13.62 million tonnes | 25.87 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 30.78 million tonnes | 26.20 million tonnes | 36.72 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 43.30 million tonnes | 32.32 million tonnes | 55.36 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 61.01 million tonnes | 56.35 million tonnes | 65.32 million tonnes | 5 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More reference data data for Nigeria
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.77 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 19.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 5.94 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 5.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 81.9 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 121.16 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 14.27 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is yams production in Nigeria?
- Yams production in Nigeria was 65.32 million tonnes in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest yams production recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 65.32 million tonnes in 2024.
- What is the lowest yams production recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.50 million tonnes in 1961.
- How does Nigeria rank for yams production?
- Nigeria ranks 1st out of 63 countries with data for 2024.
- Is yams production rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 49.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Nigeria 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 Yams production. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Yam production is measured in tonnes.