Forest area in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: Forest area was 168,495 sq. km in 2023. ▼ Falling
Forest area in Ethiopia, 1993–2023
Source: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in sq. km.
Analysis
Ethiopia recorded 168,495 sq. km for forest area in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 31 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.4% on the previous year and down 4.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest area in Ethiopia peaked at 190,395 sq. km in 1993 and was at its lowest, 168,495 sq. km, in 2023.
Ethiopia ranks 40th of 214 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 31 years of available data.
Forest area in Ethiopia, year by year
| Year | sq. km | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1993 | 190,395 sq. km | — |
| 1994 | 189,665 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 1995 | 188,935 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 1996 | 188,205 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 1997 | 187,475 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 1998 | 186,745 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 1999 | 186,015 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2000 | 185,285 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2001 | 184,555 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2002 | 183,825 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2003 | 183,095 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2004 | 182,365 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2005 | 181,635 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2006 | 180,905 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2007 | 180,175 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2008 | 179,445 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2009 | 178,715 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2010 | 177,985 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2011 | 177,255 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2012 | 176,525 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2013 | 175,795 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2014 | 175,065 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 174,335 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2016 | 173,605 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 172,875 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2018 | 172,145 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2019 | 171,415 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2020 | 170,685 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2021 | 169,955 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2022 | 169,225 sq. km | -0.4% |
| 2023 | 168,495 sq. km | -0.4% |
Ethiopia compared with similar countries
- Ethiopia's 168,495 sq. km is above the median for low income countries, which is 39,804 sq. km, 4.2× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Ethiopia's 168,495 sq. km is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 59,081 sq. km, 2.9× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 188,205 sq. km | 186,015 sq. km | 190,395 sq. km | 7 |
| 2000s | 182,000 sq. km | 178,715 sq. km | 185,285 sq. km | 10 |
| 2010s | 174,700 sq. km | 171,415 sq. km | 177,985 sq. km | 10 |
| 2020s | 169,590 sq. km | 168,495 sq. km | 170,685 sq. km | 4 |
Countries ranked near Ethiopia
More agriculture & rural data for Ethiopia
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual -20.36 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.3282 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 306.11 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.93 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0008 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.7589 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 32.8% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 32.8% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 9.7% (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.5% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest area in Ethiopia?
- Forest area in Ethiopia was 168,495 sq. km in 2023, according to FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest forest area recorded in Ethiopia?
- The highest recorded value was 190,395 sq. km in 1993.
- What is the lowest forest area recorded in Ethiopia?
- The lowest recorded value was 168,495 sq. km in 2023.
- How does Ethiopia rank for forest area?
- Ethiopia ranks 40th out of 214 countries with data for 2023.
- Is forest area rising or falling in Ethiopia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ethiopia data come from?
- The figures come from FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Forest area (sq. km). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 31 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Forest area is land 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.