Forest area in Lesotho
Lesotho: Forest area was 44,200 hectares in 2011. ▲ Rising
Forest area in Lesotho, 1990–2011
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization, electronic files and web site. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
The most recent figure for forest area in Lesotho is 44,200 hectares, measured in 2011. That is the highest value across all 22 years on record.
The figure is up 0.5% on the previous year and up 4.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest area in Lesotho peaked at 44,200 hectares in 2011 and was at its lowest, 40,000 hectares, in 1990.
Lesotho ranks 48th of 53 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
Forest area in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 40,000 hectares | — |
| 1991 | 40,200 hectares | +0.5% |
| 1992 | 40,400 hectares | +0.5% |
| 1993 | 40,600 hectares | +0.5% |
| 1994 | 40,800 hectares | +0.5% |
| 1995 | 41,000 hectares | +0.5% |
| 1996 | 41,200 hectares | +0.5% |
| 1997 | 41,400 hectares | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 41,600 hectares | +0.5% |
| 1999 | 41,800 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2000 | 42,000 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2001 | 42,200 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 42,400 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2003 | 42,600 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2004 | 42,800 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2005 | 43,000 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 43,200 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2007 | 43,400 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2008 | 43,600 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 43,800 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2010 | 44,000 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 44,200 hectares | +0.5% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 44,200 hectares is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 4.98 million hectares, 1% of the median. (24 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 44,200 hectares is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 5.59 million hectares, 1% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 40,900 hectares | 40,000 hectares | 41,800 hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 42,900 hectares | 42,000 hectares | 43,800 hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 44,100 hectares | 44,000 hectares | 44,200 hectares | 2 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
- 45 Burundi 170,200 hectares compare
- 46 Cape Verde 84,790 hectares compare
- 47 Egypt 70,600 hectares compare
- 49 Seychelles 40,700 hectares compare
- 50 Mauritius 35,020 hectares compare
- 51 Sao Tome and Principe 27,000 hectares compare
More agriculture & rural data for Lesotho
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 5.38 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0649 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 70.63 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.6715 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0005 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5533 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 6.5% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 6.5% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 5.1% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.0% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest area in Lesotho?
- Forest area in Lesotho was 44,200 hectares in 2011, according to Food and Agriculture Organization, electronic files and web site.
- What is the highest forest area recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 44,200 hectares in 2011.
- What is the lowest forest area recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 40,000 hectares in 1990.
- How does Lesotho rank for forest area?
- Lesotho ranks 48th out of 53 countries with data for 2011.
- Is forest area rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Lesotho data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization, electronic files and web site, published as part of Forest area (hectares). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Forest area is land under natural or planted stands of trees of at least 5 meters in situ, whether productive or not, and excludes tree stands in agricultural production systems (for example, in fruit plantations and agroforestry systems) and trees in urban parks and gardens.