Yearly analysis of maize production, yield, and area harvested in Botswana 2016–2023
# Maize Production Trends in Botswana (2016–2023)
## Project Summary
This project analyzes year-over-year trends in **maize production**, **area harvested**, and **yield** in Botswana from **2016 to 2023**. Using visualizations and exploratory analysis, the goal is to uncover patterns, identify top-performing years, and offer practical recommendations for sustainable improvement.
## Business Challenge
Farmers have a difficulty in optimizing crop yields and improving profitability due to lack of insights into soil conditions and historical data.
## Project Objectives
- Analyze trends in maize **production, yield, and area harvested**.
- Identify the **best and worst-performing years** and investigate potential causes.
- Provide **data-driven recommendations** to improve productivity and sustainability.
## Tools & Methodology
- **Tools Used**: Python, Pandas, Matplotlib, Seaborn, Google Spreadsheets
- **Data Sources**: Ministry of Agriculture (Botswana), summarized dataset (2016–2023)
- **Approach**: Exploratory Data Analysis (EDA), Time-Series Visualization
## 📊 Key Insights
### 1. Highest Production Year: **2021**
- Maize production peaked at **339,648 tonnes**.
- Achieved with **174,704 ha** of cultivated land.
- Likely driven by favorable weather and increased inputs.
### 2. Lowest Yield Year: **2017**
- Yield dropped to **317,558 kg/ha** — the lowest in the dataset.
- Despite harvesting only **55,467 ha**, productivity was weak, likely due to drought or poor resource distribution.
### 3. Highest Yield Year: **2023**
- Yield reached **789,401 kg/ha** — the highest across the 8-year span.
- Production wasn't the highest, but land use was highly efficient.
### 4. Fluctuating Area Harvested
- Significant shifts in land use affected total production:
- **2020**: 293,014 ha
- **2022**: 158,879 ha
## 📷 Visualizations
> _Uploaded under `charts/` folder_
- **Bar Chart**: Maize Production vs Area Harvested (2016–2023)
- **Line Chart**: Maize Yield Trends Over …