Annual change in forest area vs. GDP per capita in Malawi
Malawi: Annual change in forest area vs. GDP per capita was -2.1% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Annual change in forest area vs. GDP per capita in Malawi, 1991–2025
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for annual change in forest area vs. gdp per capita in Malawi is -2.1%, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.1% on the previous year and down 20.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual change in forest area vs. gdp per capita in Malawi peaked at -1.2% in 1991 and was at its lowest, -2.1%, in 2025.
Malawi ranks 222nd of 227 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 vs. GDP per capita in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | -1.2% | — |
| 1992 | -1.2% | +1.2% |
| 1993 | -1.2% | +1.2% |
| 1994 | -1.3% | +1.3% |
| 1995 | -1.3% | +1.3% |
| 1996 | -1.3% | +1.3% |
| 1997 | -1.3% | +1.3% |
| 1998 | -1.3% | +1.3% |
| 1999 | -1.3% | +1.3% |
| 2000 | -1.4% | +1.4% |
| 2001 | -1.4% | +1.4% |
| 2002 | -1.4% | +1.4% |
| 2003 | -1.4% | +1.4% |
| 2004 | -1.4% | +1.4% |
| 2005 | -1.5% | +1.5% |
| 2006 | -1.5% | +1.5% |
| 2007 | -1.5% | +1.5% |
| 2008 | -1.5% | +1.5% |
| 2009 | -1.6% | +1.6% |
| 2010 | -1.6% | +1.6% |
| 2011 | -1.6% | +1.6% |
| 2012 | -1.6% | +1.6% |
| 2013 | -1.7% | +1.7% |
| 2014 | -1.7% | +1.7% |
| 2015 | -1.7% | +1.7% |
| 2016 | -1.7% | +1.7% |
| 2017 | -1.8% | +1.8% |
| 2018 | -1.8% | +1.8% |
| 2019 | -1.8% | +1.8% |
| 2020 | -1.9% | +1.9% |
| 2021 | -1.9% | +1.9% |
| 2022 | -1.9% | +1.9% |
| 2023 | -2.0% | +2.0% |
| 2024 | -2.0% | +2.0% |
| 2025 | -2.1% | +2.1% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's -2.1% is below the median for low income countries, which is -0.5%, 4.4× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Malawi's -2.1% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is -0.3%, 6.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | -1.3% | -1.3% | -1.2% | 9 |
| 2000s | -1.5% | -1.6% | -1.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | -1.7% | -1.8% | -1.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | -2.0% | -2.1% | -1.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More environment data for Malawi
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -0.9153 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -0.8098 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.254 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.07 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 3.65 % 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 5.3 % 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 vs. gdp per capita in Malawi?
- Annual change in forest area vs. gdp per capita in Malawi was -2.1% 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 vs. gdp per capita recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was -1.2% in 1991.
- What is the lowest annual change in forest area vs. gdp per capita recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was -2.1% in 2025.
- How does Malawi rank for annual change in forest area vs. gdp per capita?
- Malawi ranks 222nd out of 227 countries with data for 2025.
- Is annual change in forest area vs. gdp per capita rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 20.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi 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 vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Annual net change in forest area measures forest expansion (the sum of afforestation and natural expansion) minus deforestation.