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
Agricultural Statistics Africa
| Potato Yield in 2015 : | 147198.00 | hg/ha | Calculated data | ℹ |
| Sweet Potato Production in 2015 : | 20009600.00 | tonnes | Aggregated Data | ℹ |
| Sweet Potato Area Harvested in 2015 : | 3907280.00 | ha | Aggregated Data | ℹ |
| Sweet Potato Yield in 2015 : | 51211.00 | hg/ha | Calculated data | ℹ |
| Potato Production in 2014 : | 26391500.00 | tonnes | Aggregate, may include official, semi-official, estimated or calculated data | ℹ |
| Potato Production in 2014 : | 25354300.00 | tonnes | Aggregated Data | ℹ |
| Potato Area Harvested in 2014 : | 1933180.00 | ha | Aggregate, may include official, semi-official, estimated or calculated data | ℹ |
Consumption Statistics Africa
| Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2004: | 15.45 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) |
| Sweet Potatoes , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2004: | 13.03 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Sweet Potatoes |
| Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2003: | 14.89 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) |
| Sweet Potatoes , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2003: | 11.57 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Sweet Potatoes |
| Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2002: | 13.72 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) |
| Sweet Potatoes , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2002: | 12.40 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Sweet Potatoes |
| Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) , Consumption (Crop Equivalent) in 2001: | 13.88 | kg/capita/year | ℹ | Potatoes (Fresh and Processed) |
