Forest area in Malawi
Malawi: Forest area was 22.4% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Forest area in Malawi, 1990–2023
Source: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in % of land area.
Analysis
In 2023, forest area in Malawi stood at 22.4%. That is the lowest value across all 34 years on record.
That represents a change of down 1.9% on the previous year and down 16.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest area in Malawi peaked at 37.1% in 1990 and was at its lowest, 22.4%, in 2023.
Malawi ranks 127th of 213 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 34 years of available data.
Forest area in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % of land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 37.1% | — |
| 1991 | 36.7% | -1.2% |
| 1992 | 36.3% | -1.2% |
| 1993 | 35.8% | -1.2% |
| 1994 | 35.4% | -1.2% |
| 1995 | 34.9% | -1.3% |
| 1996 | 34.5% | -1.3% |
| 1997 | 34.0% | -1.3% |
| 1998 | 33.6% | -1.3% |
| 1999 | 33.1% | -1.3% |
| 2000 | 32.7% | -1.3% |
| 2001 | 32.2% | -1.4% |
| 2002 | 31.8% | -1.4% |
| 2003 | 31.4% | -1.4% |
| 2004 | 30.9% | -1.4% |
| 2005 | 30.5% | -1.4% |
| 2006 | 30.0% | -1.5% |
| 2007 | 29.6% | -1.5% |
| 2008 | 29.1% | -1.5% |
| 2009 | 28.7% | -1.5% |
| 2010 | 28.2% | -1.6% |
| 2011 | 27.8% | -1.6% |
| 2012 | 27.3% | -1.6% |
| 2013 | 26.9% | -1.6% |
| 2014 | 26.4% | -1.7% |
| 2015 | 26.0% | -1.7% |
| 2016 | 25.6% | -1.7% |
| 2017 | 25.1% | -1.7% |
| 2018 | 24.7% | -1.8% |
| 2019 | 24.2% | -1.8% |
| 2020 | 23.8% | -1.8% |
| 2021 | 23.3% | -1.9% |
| 2022 | 22.9% | -1.9% |
| 2023 | 22.4% | -1.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 35.1% | 33.1% | 37.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 30.7% | 28.7% | 32.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 26.2% | 24.2% | 28.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 23.1% | 22.4% | 23.8% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More agriculture & rural data for Malawi
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 24.6 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.3003 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 201.66 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 2.19 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0012 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.8241 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 30.0% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 30.0% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.7% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest area in Malawi?
- Forest area in Malawi was 22.4% in 2023, according to FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest forest area recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 37.1% in 1990.
- What is the lowest forest area recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 22.4% in 2023.
- How does Malawi rank for forest area?
- Malawi ranks 127th out of 213 countries with data for 2023.
- Is forest area rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 16.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi 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.