Forest area in Namibia
Namibia: Forest area was 7.8% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Forest area in Namibia, 1990–2023
Source: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in % of land area.
Analysis
Namibia recorded 7.8% for forest area in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 34 years on record.
That represents a change of down 1.1% on the previous year and down 10.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest area in Namibia peaked at 10.7% in 1990 and was at its lowest, 7.8%, in 2023.
That places Namibia 173rd 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 Namibia, year by year
| Year | % of land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 10.7% | — |
| 1991 | 10.6% | -0.8% |
| 1992 | 10.5% | -0.8% |
| 1993 | 10.4% | -0.8% |
| 1994 | 10.3% | -0.8% |
| 1995 | 10.2% | -0.8% |
| 1996 | 10.1% | -0.8% |
| 1997 | 10.0% | -0.9% |
| 1998 | 10.0% | -0.9% |
| 1999 | 9.9% | -0.9% |
| 2000 | 9.8% | -0.9% |
| 2001 | 9.7% | -0.9% |
| 2002 | 9.6% | -0.9% |
| 2003 | 9.5% | -0.9% |
| 2004 | 9.4% | -0.9% |
| 2005 | 9.4% | -0.9% |
| 2006 | 9.3% | -0.9% |
| 2007 | 9.2% | -0.9% |
| 2008 | 9.1% | -0.9% |
| 2009 | 9.0% | -0.9% |
| 2010 | 8.9% | -1.0% |
| 2011 | 8.8% | -1.0% |
| 2012 | 8.8% | -1.0% |
| 2013 | 8.7% | -1.0% |
| 2014 | 8.6% | -1.0% |
| 2015 | 8.5% | -1.0% |
| 2016 | 8.4% | -1.0% |
| 2017 | 8.3% | -1.0% |
| 2018 | 8.2% | -1.0% |
| 2019 | 8.2% | -1.0% |
| 2020 | 8.1% | -1.1% |
| 2021 | 8.0% | -1.1% |
| 2022 | 7.9% | -1.1% |
| 2023 | 7.8% | -1.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 10.3% | 9.9% | 10.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 9.4% | 9.0% | 9.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 8.5% | 8.2% | 8.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.9% | 7.8% | 8.1% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Namibia
- 170 Eritrea 8.6% compare
- 171 Uzbekistan 8.5% compare
- 172 Côte d'Ivoire 7.9% compare
- 174 Kyrgyzstan 7.1% compare
- 175 Iran, Islamic Republic of 6.6% compare
- 176 Israel 6.5% compare
More agriculture & rural data for Namibia
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 8 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0699 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 340.78 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.13 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.4913 units per person (2025)
- Agriculture share gdp 6.99 (2025)
- Value added in the agricultural sector as of gdp vs gdp per capita 6.99 (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.5% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest area in Namibia?
- Forest area in Namibia was 7.8% in 2023, according to FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest forest area recorded in Namibia?
- The highest recorded value was 10.7% in 1990.
- What is the lowest forest area recorded in Namibia?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.8% in 2023.
- How does Namibia rank for forest area?
- Namibia ranks 173rd out of 213 countries with data for 2023.
- Is forest area rising or falling in Namibia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Namibia 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.