Forest area in South Asia
South Asia: Forest area was 25.6% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Forest area in South Asia, 1990–2023
Source: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in % of land area.
Analysis
South Asia recorded 25.6% for forest area in 2023. That is the highest value across all 34 years on record.
The figure is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 3.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest area in South Asia peaked at 25.6% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 22.8%, in 1990.
That places South Asia 34th out of 47 groups with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Forest area in South Asia, year by year
| Year | % of land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 22.8% | — |
| 1991 | 22.9% | +0.5% |
| 1992 | 23.0% | +0.5% |
| 1993 | 23.1% | +0.5% |
| 1994 | 23.2% | +0.7% |
| 1995 | 23.4% | +0.5% |
| 1996 | 23.5% | +0.5% |
| 1997 | 23.6% | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 23.7% | +0.5% |
| 1999 | 23.8% | +0.5% |
| 2000 | 23.9% | +0.5% |
| 2001 | 24.0% | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 24.0% | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 24.1% | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 24.2% | +0.3% |
| 2005 | 24.2% | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 24.3% | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 24.4% | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 24.4% | +0.3% |
| 2009 | 24.5% | +0.3% |
| 2010 | 24.5% | +0.3% |
| 2011 | 24.6% | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 24.7% | +0.3% |
| 2013 | 24.8% | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 24.9% | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 25.0% | +0.4% |
| 2016 | 25.0% | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 25.1% | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 25.2% | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 25.3% | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 25.3% | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 25.4% | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 25.5% | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 25.6% | +0.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 23.3% | 22.8% | 23.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 24.2% | 23.9% | 24.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 24.9% | 24.5% | 25.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 25.5% | 25.3% | 25.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Asia
More agriculture & rural data for South Asia
- Rural population, per capita 0.6421 units per person (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 15.6% (2025)
- Rural population 1.09 billion (2025)
- Rural population growth 0.4% (2025)
- Rural population 64.2% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.6% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.0% (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 421.99 current US$ per person (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual -2.13 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.156 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest area in South Asia?
- Forest area in South Asia was 25.6% in 2023, according to FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest forest area recorded in South Asia?
- The highest recorded value was 25.6% in 2023.
- What is the lowest forest area recorded in South Asia?
- The lowest recorded value was 22.8% in 1990.
- How does South Asia rank for forest area?
- South Asia ranks 34th out of 47 groups with data for 2023.
- Is forest area rising or falling in South Asia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Asia 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.