Melanesia vs Sub-Saharan Africa: Primary Forest — Area
Primary Forest — Area over time
- Melanesia
- Sub-Saharan Africa
How they compare
Sub-Saharan Africa currently reports 162,234 1000 ha against 21,424 1000 ha in Melanesia, a difference of 140,810 1000 ha.
That makes Sub-Saharan Africa's figure about 7.6 times Melanesia's.
Across all 36 years both countries report, Sub-Saharan Africa has been ahead every year.
Melanesia ranks 10th and Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 10th of 169 countries.
Sub-Saharan Africa has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Melanesia | Sub-Saharan Africa | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 21,992 1000 ha | 186,789 1000 ha | 164,797 1000 ha | Sub-Saharan Africa |
| 2000s | 21,825 1000 ha | 178,574 1000 ha | 156,749 1000 ha | Sub-Saharan Africa |
| 2010s | 21,653 1000 ha | 168,928 1000 ha | 147,275 1000 ha | Sub-Saharan Africa |
| 2020s | 21,481 1000 ha | 163,590 1000 ha | 142,109 1000 ha | Sub-Saharan Africa |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary forest — area, Melanesia or Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Sub-Saharan Africa, at 162,234 1000 ha against 21,424 1000 ha in Melanesia as of 2025.
- What is the difference in primary forest — area between Melanesia and Sub-Saharan Africa?
- 140,810 1000 ha, with Sub-Saharan Africa ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Melanesia and Sub-Saharan Africa?
- 36 years are reported by both, from 1990 to 2025.
- How do Melanesia and Sub-Saharan Africa rank globally for primary forest — area?
- Melanesia ranks 10th and Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 10th of 169 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as Primary Forest — Area. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
The FAOSTAT Land Use domain contains data on twenty-one land use categories and twenty-three categories of irrigation and agricultural practices. Data are available yearly and by country, regional and global levels. The domain includes Land Use Indicators providing information on the percentage share of agricultural and forest land, and their sub-components, including irrigated areas and areas under organic agriculture, within a country land use matrix. Data are available at country, regional and global level, for the following elements: (in percentage) i) Share in Land area; ii) Share in Agricultural land, iii) Share in Cropland; and iv) Share in Forest land; (in ha/pc) v) Area per capita.