Annual change forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo: Annual change forest area was -282,894 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
-282,894
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
229th
of 235 countries
All-time high
-282,888
in 2016
All-time low
-1.00 million
in 2011
Years of data
35
1991–2025
Annual change forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo, 1991–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, annual change forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo stood at -282,894.
The figure is up 71.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual change forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at -282,888 in 2016 and was at its lowest, -1.00 million, in 2011.
That places Democratic Republic of Congo 229th out of 235 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Annual change forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | -674,988 | — |
| 1992 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 1993 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 1994 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 1995 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 1996 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 1997 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 1998 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 1999 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 2000 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 2001 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 2002 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 2003 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 2004 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 2005 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 2006 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 2007 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 2008 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 2009 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 2010 | -674,988 | -0.0% |
| 2011 | -1.00 million | +48.8% |
| 2012 | -1.00 million | -0.0% |
| 2013 | -1.00 million | -0.0% |
| 2014 | -1.00 million | -0.0% |
| 2015 | -1.00 million | -0.0% |
| 2016 | -282,888 | -71.8% |
| 2017 | -282,888 | -0.0% |
| 2018 | -282,888 | -0.0% |
| 2019 | -282,888 | -0.0% |
| 2020 | -282,888 | -0.0% |
| 2021 | -282,894 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | -282,894 | -0.0% |
| 2023 | -282,894 | -0.0% |
| 2024 | -282,894 | -0.0% |
| 2025 | -282,894 | -0.0% |
Democratic Republic of Congo compared with similar countries
- Democratic Republic of Congo's -282,894 is below the median for low income countries, which is -19,726, 14.3× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Democratic Republic of Congo's -282,894 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is -7,546, 37.5× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | -674,988 | -674,988 | -674,988 | 9 |
| 2000s | -674,988 | -674,988 | -674,988 | 10 |
| 2010s | -682,904 | -1.00 million | -282,888 | 10 |
| 2020s | -282,893 | -282,894 | -282,888 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo
More environment data for Democratic Republic of Congo
- Grazing land use over the long-term, annual growth rate 0.0005 % change on previous year (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0.0002 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per capita 0.1613 hectares per person (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per square kilometre 8.03 hectares per square kilometre (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.26 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 5.2 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual change forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Annual change forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo was -282,894 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual change forest area recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The highest recorded value was -282,888 in 2016.
- What is the lowest annual change forest area recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was -1.00 million in 2011.
- How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for annual change forest area?
- Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 229th out of 235 countries with data for 2025.
- Is annual change forest area rising or falling in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Over the last ten years it is up 71.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Democratic Republic of Congo data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Annual change forest area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).