Annual change in forest area in Tanzania
Tanzania: Annual change in forest area was -469,000 hectares in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
-469,000 hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
233rd
of 235 countries
All-time high
-403,000 hectares
in 1991
All-time low
-469,000 hectares
in 2016
Years of data
35
1991–2025
Annual change in forest area in Tanzania, 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 Tanzania is -469,000 hectares, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 16.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual change in forest area in Tanzania peaked at -403,000 hectares in 1991 and was at its lowest, -469,000 hectares, in 2016.
That places Tanzania 233rd out of 235 countries with data for 2025, putting it 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 Tanzania, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | -403,000 hectares | — |
| 1992 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1993 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1994 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1995 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1996 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1997 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1998 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 1999 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2000 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2001 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2002 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2003 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2004 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2005 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2006 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2007 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2008 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2009 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2010 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2011 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2012 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2013 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2014 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2015 | -403,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2016 | -469,000 hectares | +16.4% |
| 2017 | -469,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2018 | -469,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2019 | -469,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2020 | -469,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2021 | -469,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2022 | -469,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2023 | -469,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2024 | -469,000 hectares | -0.0% |
| 2025 | -469,000 hectares | -0.0% |
Tanzania compared with similar countries
- Tanzania's -469,000 hectares is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is -848 hectares, 553.1× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Tanzania's -469,000 hectares is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is -7,546 hectares, 62.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | -403,000 hectares | -403,000 hectares | -403,000 hectares | 9 |
| 2000s | -403,000 hectares | -403,000 hectares | -403,000 hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | -429,400 hectares | -469,000 hectares | -403,000 hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | -469,000 hectares | -469,000 hectares | -469,000 hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near Tanzania
More environment data for Tanzania
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -7.52 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -7.29 Percentage change (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 3.06 % 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 5.16 % 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)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual change in forest area in Tanzania?
- Annual change in forest area in Tanzania was -469,000 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 Tanzania?
- The highest recorded value was -403,000 hectares in 1991.
- What is the lowest annual change in forest area recorded in Tanzania?
- The lowest recorded value was -469,000 hectares in 2016.
- How does Tanzania rank for annual change in forest area?
- Tanzania ranks 233rd out of 235 countries with data for 2025.
- Is annual change in forest area rising or falling in Tanzania?
- Over the last ten years it is down 16.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Tanzania 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.