Forest area in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Forest area was 25.7% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Forest area in Sub-Saharan Africa, 1990–2023
Source: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in % of land area.
Analysis
In 2023, forest area in Sub-Saharan Africa stood at 25.7%. That is the lowest value across all 34 years on record.
The figure is down 0.6% on the previous year and down 6.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest area in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 33.9% in 1990 and was at its lowest, 25.7%, in 2023.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa 31st out of 47 groups with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 34 years of available data.
Forest area in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | % of land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 33.9% | — |
| 1991 | 33.8% | -0.4% |
| 1992 | 33.6% | -0.4% |
| 1993 | 32.7% | -2.8% |
| 1994 | 32.5% | -0.4% |
| 1995 | 32.4% | -0.4% |
| 1996 | 32.2% | -0.5% |
| 1997 | 32.1% | -0.5% |
| 1998 | 31.9% | -0.5% |
| 1999 | 31.8% | -0.5% |
| 2000 | 31.6% | -0.5% |
| 2001 | 31.5% | -0.5% |
| 2002 | 31.3% | -0.5% |
| 2003 | 31.2% | -0.5% |
| 2004 | 30.8% | -1.2% |
| 2005 | 30.7% | -0.5% |
| 2006 | 30.5% | -0.5% |
| 2007 | 30.4% | -0.5% |
| 2008 | 30.2% | -0.5% |
| 2009 | 30.0% | -0.5% |
| 2010 | 29.9% | -0.5% |
| 2011 | 29.7% | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 27.6% | -7.2% |
| 2013 | 27.4% | -0.6% |
| 2014 | 27.2% | -0.6% |
| 2015 | 27.1% | -0.6% |
| 2016 | 26.9% | -0.6% |
| 2017 | 26.7% | -0.6% |
| 2018 | 26.6% | -0.6% |
| 2019 | 26.4% | -0.6% |
| 2020 | 26.2% | -0.6% |
| 2021 | 26.1% | -0.6% |
| 2022 | 25.9% | -0.6% |
| 2023 | 25.7% | -0.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 32.7% | 31.8% | 33.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 30.8% | 30.0% | 31.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 27.6% | 26.4% | 29.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 26.0% | 25.7% | 26.2% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
More agriculture & rural data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 10.7 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5534 units per person (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1791 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 299.6 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.53 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 17.9% (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 395.96 billion current US$ (2025)
- Rural population 731.42 million (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest area in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Forest area in Sub-Saharan Africa was 25.7% in 2023, according to FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest forest area recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 33.9% in 1990.
- What is the lowest forest area recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 25.7% in 2023.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for forest area?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 31st out of 47 groups with data for 2023.
- Is forest area rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa 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.