Annual change in forest area in Kenya
Kenya: Annual change in forest area was 64,470 hectares in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
64,470 hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
9th
of 235 countries
All-time high
64,470 hectares
in 2021
All-time low
-98,918 hectares
in 2011
Years of data
35
1991–2025
Annual change in forest area in Kenya, 1991–2025
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
The most recent figure for annual change in forest area in Kenya is 64,470 hectares, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of up 165.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual change in forest area in Kenya peaked at 64,470 hectares in 2021 and was at its lowest, -98,918 hectares, in 2011.
That places Kenya 9th out of 235 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Annual change in forest area in Kenya, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 7,561 hectares | — |
| 1992 | 7,561 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 7,561 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 7,561 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 7,561 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 7,561 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 7,561 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 7,561 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 7,561 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 7,561 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 6,226 hectares | -17.7% |
| 2002 | 6,226 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 6,226 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 6,226 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 6,226 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 6,226 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 6,226 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 6,226 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 6,226 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 6,226 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2011 | -98,918 hectares | -1688.8% |
| 2012 | -98,918 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2013 | -98,918 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2014 | -98,918 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2015 | -98,918 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2016 | 41,516 hectares | -142.0% |
| 2017 | 41,516 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 41,516 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 41,516 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 41,516 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 64,470 hectares | +55.3% |
| 2022 | 64,470 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 64,470 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 64,470 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 64,470 hectares | +0.0% |
Kenya compared with similar countries
- Kenya's 64,470 hectares is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is -848 hectares. (47 countries reporting)
- Kenya's 64,470 hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is -7,546 hectares. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 7,561 hectares | 7,561 hectares | 7,561 hectares | 9 |
| 2000s | 6,359 hectares | 6,226 hectares | 7,561 hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | -32,230 hectares | -98,918 hectares | 41,516 hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 60,644 hectares | 41,516 hectares | 64,470 hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
- 6 India 86,000 hectares compare
- 7 Indonesia 81,480 hectares compare
- 8 New Zealand 67,548 hectares compare
- 10 Australia 54,094 hectares compare
- 11 Philippines 42,450 hectares compare
- 12 Uzbekistan 41,038 hectares compare
More environment data for Kenya
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -8.08 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -4.73 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.27 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.12 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.25 % 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 2.87 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual change in forest area in Kenya?
- Annual change in forest area in Kenya was 64,470 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 Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 64,470 hectares in 2021.
- What is the lowest annual change in forest area recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was -98,918 hectares in 2011.
- How does Kenya rank for annual change in forest area?
- Kenya ranks 9th out of 235 countries with data for 2025.
- Is annual change in forest area rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is up 165.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Kenya 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.