Africa vs Nigeria: CO2 emissions from fossil-fuels, total

Africa
1.22 million thousand metric tons
in 2009
Nigeria
70,234 thousand metric tons
in 2009
Africa rank
1st
Nigeria rank
4th

CO2 emissions from fossil-fuels, total over time

  • Africa
  • Nigeria
0250.0k500.0k750.0k1.0M1.2M196019842009

How they compare

Africa currently reports 1.22 million thousand metric tons against 70,234 thousand metric tons in Nigeria, a difference of 1.15 million thousand metric tons.

That makes Africa's figure about 17.3 times Nigeria's.

Across all 50 years both countries report, Africa has been ahead every year.

Africa ranks 1st and Nigeria ranks 4th of 6 groups.

Africa has averaged higher in every one of the 5 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade Africa Nigeria Difference Ahead
1960s 208,993 thousand metric tons 8,058 thousand metric tons 200,935 thousand metric tons Africa
1970s 402,572 thousand metric tons 47,891 thousand metric tons 354,681 thousand metric tons Africa
1980s 646,334 thousand metric tons 64,520 thousand metric tons 581,814 thousand metric tons Africa
1990s 776,173 thousand metric tons 46,273 thousand metric tons 729,900 thousand metric tons Africa
2000s 1.04 million thousand metric tons 90,179 thousand metric tons 948,195 thousand metric tons Africa

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher co2 emissions from fossil-fuels, total, Africa or Nigeria?
Africa, at 1.22 million thousand metric tons against 70,234 thousand metric tons in Nigeria as of 2009.
What is the difference in co2 emissions from fossil-fuels, total between Africa and Nigeria?
1.15 million thousand metric tons, with Africa ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Africa and Nigeria?
50 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2009.
How do Africa and Nigeria rank globally for co2 emissions from fossil-fuels, total?
Africa ranks 1st and Nigeria ranks 4th of 6 groups.
Where does this data come from?
Food and Agriculture Organization, electronic files and web site, published as CO2 emissions from fossil-fuels, total (thousand metric tons). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Africa vs Nigeria: CO2 emissions from fossil-fuels, total. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization, electronic files and web site. Retrieved 01 September 2026, from https://environment.statizoid.com/compare/co2-emissions-from-fossil-fuels-total-thousand-metric-tons/africa/nigeria/

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About this data

Indicator
CO2 emissions from fossil-fuels, total (thousand metric tons)
Unit
thousand metric tons
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization, electronic files and web site
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
57 places, 2,749 data points, 1960–2009
Last refreshed

Fossil fuel is any hydrocarbon deposit that can be burned for heat or power, such as petroleum, coal, and natural gas. This is the sum total of all fossil fuel emissions (solid fuel consumption, liquid fuel consumption, gas fuel consumption, cement production and gas flaring). The U.S. Department of Energy’s carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center (CDIAC) calculates annual anthropogenic emissions from data on fossil fuel consumption (from the United Nations Statistics Division’s World Energy Data Set) and world cement manufacturing (from the U.S. Bureau of Mine’s Cement Manufacturing Data Set). Carbon dioxide emissions, often calculated and reported as elemental carbon, were converted to actual carbon dioxide mass by multiplying them by 3.664 (the ratio of the mass of carbon to that of carbon dioxide). Although estimates of global carbon dioxide emissions are probably accurate within 10 percent (as calculated from global average file chemistry and use), country estimates may have larger error bounds. Trends estimated from a consistent time series tend to be more accurate than individual values. Each year the CDIAC recalculates the entire time series since 1949, incorporating recent findings and corrections. Estimates exclude fuels supplied to ships and aircraft in international transport because of the difficulty of apportioning he fuels among benefitting countries. The ratio of carbon dioxide per unit of energy shows carbon intensity, which is the amount of carbon dioxide emitted as a result of using one unit of energy in the process of production.