Tree Cover Loss in Democratic Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo: Tree Cover Loss was 1.29 million hectares in 2025. ▲ Rising
Tree Cover Loss in Democratic Republic of Congo, 2001–2025
Source: Global Forest Watch. Tree Cover Loss (Hansen/UMD/Google/USGS/NASA). Measured in hectares.
Analysis
Democratic Republic of Congo recorded 1.29 million hectares for tree cover loss in 2025.
The figure is down 6.5% on the previous year and up 38.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, tree cover loss in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at 1.47 million hectares in 2017 and was at its lowest, 274,612 hectares, in 2003.
Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 5th of 190 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Tree Cover Loss in Democratic Republic of Congo, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 455,532 hectares | — |
| 2002 | 514,459 hectares | +12.9% |
| 2003 | 274,612 hectares | -46.6% |
| 2004 | 400,045 hectares | +45.7% |
| 2005 | 485,236 hectares | +21.3% |
| 2006 | 453,201 hectares | -6.6% |
| 2007 | 462,776 hectares | +2.1% |
| 2008 | 404,912 hectares | -12.5% |
| 2009 | 635,436 hectares | +56.9% |
| 2010 | 811,874 hectares | +27.8% |
| 2011 | 429,465 hectares | -47.1% |
| 2012 | 632,082 hectares | +47.2% |
| 2013 | 920,750 hectares | +45.7% |
| 2014 | 1.34 million hectares | +45.4% |
| 2015 | 928,502 hectares | -30.6% |
| 2016 | 1.38 million hectares | +48.8% |
| 2017 | 1.47 million hectares | +6.3% |
| 2018 | 1.37 million hectares | -6.4% |
| 2019 | 1.22 million hectares | -11.2% |
| 2020 | 1.31 million hectares | +7.4% |
| 2021 | 1.25 million hectares | -4.7% |
| 2022 | 1.22 million hectares | -2.2% |
| 2023 | 1.33 million hectares | +8.6% |
| 2024 | 1.38 million hectares | +4.0% |
| 2025 | 1.29 million hectares | -6.5% |
Democratic Republic of Congo compared with similar countries
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 1.29 million hectares is above the median for low income countries, which is 8,372 hectares, 153.8× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 1.29 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 8,252 hectares, 156.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 454,023 hectares | 274,612 hectares | 635,436 hectares | 9 |
| 2010s | 1.05 million hectares | 429,465 hectares | 1.47 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.29 million hectares | 1.22 million hectares | 1.38 million hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo
More agriculture & rural data for Democratic Republic of Congo
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 6.48 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0893 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 72.04 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 2.57 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0007 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5489 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 8.9% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 8.9% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.3% (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.6% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is tree cover loss in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Tree cover loss in Democratic Republic of Congo was 1.29 million hectares in 2025, according to Global Forest Watch. Tree Cover Loss (Hansen/UMD/Google/USGS/NASA).
- What is the highest tree cover loss recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The highest recorded value was 1.47 million hectares in 2017.
- What is the lowest tree cover loss recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was 274,612 hectares in 2003.
- How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for tree cover loss?
- Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 5th out of 190 countries with data for 2025.
- Is tree cover loss rising or falling in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Over the last ten years it is up 38.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Democratic Republic of Congo data come from?
- The figures come from Global Forest Watch. Tree Cover Loss (Hansen/UMD/Google/USGS/NASA), published as part of Tree Cover Loss (hectares). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Shows year-by-year tree cover loss, defined as stand level replacement of vegetation greater than 5 meters, within the selected area. The tree cover loss data set is a collaboration of the University of Maryland, Google, USGS, and NASA, and uses Landsat satellite images to map annual tree cover loss at a 30 × 30 meter resolution. Note that “tree cover loss” is not the same as “deforestation” – tree cover loss includes change in both natural and planted forest, and does not need to be human caused. The data from 2011 onward were produced with an updated methodology that may capture additional loss. Comparisons between the original 2001-2010 data and future years should be performed with caution.