Annual change in forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo: Annual change in forest area was -282,894 hectares in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
-282,894 hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
229th
of 235 countries
All-time high
-282,888 hectares
in 2016
All-time low
-1.00 million hectares
in 2011
Years of data
35
1991–2025
Annual change in forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo, 1991–2025
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2025, annual change in forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo stood at -282,894 hectares.
The figure is up 71.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual change in forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at -282,888 hectares in 2016 and was at its lowest, -1.00 million hectares, 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 in forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | -674,988 hectares | — |
| 1992 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1993 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1994 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1995 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1996 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1997 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1998 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1999 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2000 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2001 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2002 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2003 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2004 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2005 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2006 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2007 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2008 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2009 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2010 | -674,988 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2011 | -1.00 million hectares | +48.8% |
| 2012 | -1.00 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2013 | -1.00 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2014 | -1.00 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2015 | -1.00 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2016 | -282,888 hectares | -71.8% |
| 2017 | -282,888 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2018 | -282,888 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2019 | -282,888 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2020 | -282,888 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2021 | -282,894 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2022 | -282,894 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2023 | -282,894 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2024 | -282,894 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2025 | -282,894 hectares | -0.0% |
Democratic Republic of Congo compared with similar countries
- Democratic Republic of Congo's -282,894 hectares is below the median for low income countries, which is -19,726 hectares, 14.3× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Democratic Republic of Congo's -282,894 hectares is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is -7,546 hectares, 37.5× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | -674,988 hectares | -674,988 hectares | -674,988 hectares | 9 |
| 2000s | -674,988 hectares | -674,988 hectares | -674,988 hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | -682,904 hectares | -1.00 million hectares | -282,888 hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | -282,893 hectares | -282,894 hectares | -282,888 hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo
More environment data for Democratic Republic of Congo
- 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)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) (Mt CO2e), annual 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) (Mt CO2e), per unit of 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Fugitive Emissions (Energy) (Mt CO2e) 0.338 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual change in forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Annual change in forest area in Democratic Republic of Congo was -282,894 hectares in 2025, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual change in forest area recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The highest recorded value was -282,888 hectares in 2016.
- What is the lowest annual change in forest area recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was -1.00 million hectares in 2011.
- How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for annual change in forest area?
- Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 229th out of 235 countries with data for 2025.
- Is annual change in 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 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual change in 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).
About this data
Net change in forest area measures forest expansion (the sum of afforestation and natural expansion) minus deforestation.