Annual change in forest area in Madagascar
Madagascar: Annual change in forest area was -124,278 hectares in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
-124,278 hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
218th
of 235 countries
All-time high
-66,278 hectares
in 1991
All-time low
-160,132 hectares
in 2011
Years of data
35
1991–2025
Annual change in forest area in Madagascar, 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 Madagascar stood at -124,278 hectares.
That represents a change of up 22.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual change in forest area in Madagascar peaked at -66,278 hectares in 1991 and was at its lowest, -160,132 hectares, in 2011.
Madagascar ranks 218th of 235 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Annual change in forest area in Madagascar, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | -66,278 hectares | — |
| 1992 | -66,278 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1993 | -66,278 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1994 | -66,278 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1995 | -66,278 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1996 | -66,278 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1997 | -66,278 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1998 | -66,278 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1999 | -66,278 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2000 | -66,278 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2001 | -106,810 hectares | +61.2% |
| 2002 | -106,810 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2003 | -106,810 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2004 | -106,810 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2005 | -106,810 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2006 | -106,810 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2007 | -106,810 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2008 | -106,810 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2009 | -106,810 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2010 | -106,810 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2011 | -160,132 hectares | +49.9% |
| 2012 | -160,132 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2013 | -160,132 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2014 | -160,132 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2015 | -160,132 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2016 | -120,426 hectares | -24.8% |
| 2017 | -120,426 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2018 | -120,426 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2019 | -120,426 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2020 | -120,426 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2021 | -124,278 hectares | +3.2% |
| 2022 | -124,278 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2023 | -124,278 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2024 | -124,278 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2025 | -124,278 hectares | -0.0% |
Madagascar compared with similar countries
- Madagascar's -124,278 hectares is below the median for low income countries, which is -19,726 hectares, 6.3× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Madagascar's -124,278 hectares is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is -7,546 hectares, 16.5× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | -66,278 hectares | -66,278 hectares | -66,278 hectares | 9 |
| 2000s | -102,757 hectares | -106,810 hectares | -66,278 hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | -138,917 hectares | -160,132 hectares | -106,810 hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | -123,636 hectares | -124,278 hectares | -120,426 hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near Madagascar
More environment data for Madagascar
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.297 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.17 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.2369 % 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 -1.01 % 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)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual change in forest area in Madagascar?
- Annual change in forest area in Madagascar was -124,278 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 Madagascar?
- The highest recorded value was -66,278 hectares in 1991.
- What is the lowest annual change in forest area recorded in Madagascar?
- The lowest recorded value was -160,132 hectares in 2011.
- How does Madagascar rank for annual change in forest area?
- Madagascar ranks 218th out of 235 countries with data for 2025.
- Is annual change in forest area rising or falling in Madagascar?
- Over the last ten years it is up 22.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Madagascar 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.