Annual change in forest area in South Africa
South Africa: Annual change in forest area was 87,566 hectares in 2025. ▬ Flat
Annual change in forest area in South Africa, 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 South Africa is 87,566 hectares, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual change in forest area in South Africa peaked at 87,568 hectares in 1991 and was at its lowest, 87,566 hectares, in 2016.
That places South Africa 5th out of 235 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 87,568 hectares | 87,568 hectares | 87,568 hectares | 9 |
| 2000s | 87,568 hectares | 87,568 hectares | 87,568 hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 87,567 hectares | 87,566 hectares | 87,568 hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 87,566 hectares | 87,566 hectares | 87,566 hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More environment data for South Africa
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF 569.81 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF per capita 8.9 t CO2e/capita (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture 25.85 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) 1.31 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Fugitive Emissions (Energy) 40 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Industrial Combustion (Energy) 0.1686 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF 93.23 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) 0.055 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Transport (Energy) 0.1946 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Waste 25.44 Mt CO2e (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual change in forest area in South Africa?
- Annual change in forest area in South Africa was 87,566 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 South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 87,568 hectares in 1991.
- What is the lowest annual change in forest area recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 87,566 hectares in 2016.
- How does South Africa rank for annual change in forest area?
- South Africa ranks 5th out of 235 countries with data for 2025.
- Is annual change in forest area rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this South Africa 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.