Forest area in Kenya
Kenya: Forest area was 6.2% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Forest area in Kenya, 1990–2023
Source: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in % of land area.
Analysis
The most recent figure for forest area in Kenya is 6.2%, measured in 2023.
The figure is down 0.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest area in Kenya peaked at 7.0% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 6.2%, in 2015.
That places Kenya 177th out of 213 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 34 years of available data.
Forest area in Kenya, year by year
| Year | % of land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 6.8% | — |
| 1991 | 6.8% | +0.3% |
| 1992 | 6.8% | +0.3% |
| 1993 | 6.8% | +0.3% |
| 1994 | 6.9% | +0.3% |
| 1995 | 6.9% | +0.3% |
| 1996 | 6.9% | +0.3% |
| 1997 | 6.9% | +0.3% |
| 1998 | 6.9% | +0.3% |
| 1999 | 6.9% | +0.3% |
| 2000 | 7.0% | +0.3% |
| 2001 | 6.9% | -0.9% |
| 2002 | 6.8% | -0.9% |
| 2003 | 6.8% | -0.9% |
| 2004 | 6.7% | -0.9% |
| 2005 | 6.7% | -0.9% |
| 2006 | 6.6% | -0.9% |
| 2007 | 6.5% | -0.9% |
| 2008 | 6.5% | -0.9% |
| 2009 | 6.4% | -0.9% |
| 2010 | 6.4% | -0.9% |
| 2011 | 6.3% | -0.5% |
| 2012 | 6.3% | -0.5% |
| 2013 | 6.3% | -0.5% |
| 2014 | 6.2% | -0.5% |
| 2015 | 6.2% | -0.9% |
| 2016 | 6.2% | +0.5% |
| 2017 | 6.2% | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 6.3% | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 6.2% | -0.3% |
| 2020 | 6.2% | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 6.2% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 6.2% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 6.2% | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 6.9% | 6.8% | 6.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 6.7% | 6.4% | 7.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.3% | 6.2% | 6.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.2% | 6.2% | 6.2% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
More agriculture & rural data for Kenya
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 16.52 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.2316 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 547.24 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.47 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.6779 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 23.2% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 23.2% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 12.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.0% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest area in Kenya?
- Forest area in Kenya was 6.2% in 2023, according to FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest forest area recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 7.0% in 2000.
- What is the lowest forest area recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.2% in 2015.
- How does Kenya rank for forest area?
- Kenya ranks 177th out of 213 countries with data for 2023.
- Is forest area rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Kenya data come from?
- The figures come from FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Forest area (% of land area). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Forest area (% of land area) is the share of total land area that is 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.