Central African Republic: Land under cereal production (hectares)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Central African Republic's land under cereal production (hectares) rose 4.1% on 2023 (from 344,610 to 358,805).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +6.1% and a typical year strayed about 22.4% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 112.7% in 2020 and the biggest yearly fall was 34.4% in 2010. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is upward, about 29,070 a year. A straight line explains 75% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2024, Central African Republic had the 105th highest value of the 177 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Central African Republic in the 2024 ranking

• Chile — 102nd of 177: 386,898
• Tajikistan — 103rd of 177: 376,457
• Mauritania — 104th of 177: 370,911
• Mongolia — 106th of 177: 354,364
• Somalia, Fed. Rep. — 107th of 177: 353,654
• Estonia — 108th of 177: 349,200

What this measures

Land under cereal production refers to harvested area, although some countries report only sown or cultivated area. Cereals include wheat, rice, maize, barley, oats, rye, millet, sorghum, buckwheat, and mixed grains. Production data on cereals relate to crops harvested for dry grain only. Cereal crops harvested for hay or harvested green for food, feed, or silage and those used for grazing are excluded.

Limitations: The data are collected by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) through annual questionnaires. They are supplemented with information from official secondary data sources. The secondary sources cover official country data from websites of national ministries, national publications and related country data reported by various international organizations. The FAO tries to impose standard definitions and reporting methods, but complete consistency across countries and over time is not possible. Thus, data on agricultural land in different climates may not be comparable.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a sum.

All 64 values

Land under cereal production (hectares) in nearby economies

• Angola — 3.16 million (2024)
• Benin — 2.14 million (2024)
• Botswana — 60,588 (2024)
• Burkina Faso — 4.35 million (2024)
• Burundi — 678,679 (2024)
• Cabo Verde — 124 (2024)
• Cameroon — 2.17 million (2024)
• Chad — 3.28 million (2024)
• Comoros — 11,707 (2024)
• Congo, Dem. Rep. — 5.03 million (2024)
• Congo, Rep.

More environment data for Central African Republic

• Population in largest city — 1.02 million (2025)
• Population in the largest city (% of urban population) — 41.37% (2025)
• Rural population — 3.06 million (2025)
• Rural population (% of total population) — 55.45% (2025)
• Urban population — 2.46 million (2025)
• Urban population (% of total population) — 44.55% (2025)
• Aquaculture production (metric tons) — 410 (2024)
• Capture fisheries production (metric tons) — 29,000 (2024)
• Total fisheries production (metric tons) — 29,410 (2024)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Central African Republic's land under cereal production (hectares)?

358,805 in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1961?

It is up 133.75% from 153,500 in 1961 (1.36% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 389,559 in 2020 and the lowest 93,395 in 1992.

How does Central African Republic rank?

105th highest of 177 economies with data for 2024.

Is the latest change in land under cereal production (hectares) unusual for Central African Republic?

In 2024, Central African Republic's land under cereal production (hectares) rose 4.1% on 2023 (from 344,610 to 358,805). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +6.1% and a typical year strayed about 22.4% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator AG.LND.CREL.HA, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), uri: https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QCL, note: Item code F1717, publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.