Potato arrived late in Africa, around the turn of the 20th century. In recent decades, production has been in continual expansion, rising from 2 million tonnes in 1960 to over 30 million tonnes in 2013.
Potatoes are grown under a wide range of conditions - from irrigated commercial farms in Egypt and South Africa to intensively cultivated tropical highland zones of Eastern and Central Africa, where it is mainly a small farmer's crop.
In some African countries the production of potatoes is growing very rapidly. Algeria more than doubled its potato production in 5 years, and seems to have overtaken Egypt as the #1 producer in Africa in 2013 - at least based on the preliminary FAO estimate for Egypt. Rwanda also almost doubled its potato production in the last 5 years and now ranks in the top 5 potato producing countries of Africa
Potatoes are grown under a wide range of conditions - from irrigated commercial farms in Egypt and South Africa to intensively cultivated tropical highland zones of Eastern and Central Africa, where it is mainly a small farmer's crop.
In some African countries the production of potatoes is growing very rapidly. Algeria more than doubled its potato production in 5 years, and seems to have overtaken Egypt as the #1 producer in Africa in 2013 - at least based on the preliminary FAO estimate for Egypt. Rwanda also almost doubled its potato production in the last 5 years and now ranks in the top 5 potato producing countries of Africa
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Agricultural Statistics Africa
| Potato Production in 2017 : | 25011800.00 | tonnes | Aggregate, may include official, semi-official, estimated or calculated data | ℹ |
| Potato Area Harvested in 2017 : | 1892630.00 | ha | Aggregate, may include official, semi-official, estimated or calculated data | ℹ |
| Potato Yield in 2017 : | 132154.00 | hg/ha | Calculated data | ℹ |
| Sweet Potato Production in 2017 : | 27720800.00 | tonnes | Aggregate, may include official, semi-official, estimated or calculated data | ℹ |
| Sweet Potato Area Harvested in 2017 : | 4715300.00 | ha | Aggregate, may include official, semi-official, estimated or calculated data | ℹ |
| Sweet Potato Yield in 2017 : | 58789.00 | hg/ha | Calculated data | ℹ |
| Potato Production in 2016 : | 24501900.00 | tonnes | Aggregated Data | ℹ |
Consumption Statistics Africa
| Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2011: | 18.76 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) |
| Sweet Potatoes , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2011: | 13.19 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Sweet Potatoes |
| Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2010: | 19.30 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) |
| Sweet Potatoes , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2010: | 14.02 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Sweet Potatoes |
| Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2009: | 17.97 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) |
| Sweet Potatoes , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2009: | 13.41 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Sweet Potatoes |
| Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2008: | 18.05 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) |
