Agriculture-driven deforestation in Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone: Agriculture-driven deforestation was 16,830 hectares in 2024. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2024)
16,830 hectares
Change on year
up 27.8%
World rank
39th
of 187 countries
All-time high
31,856 hectares
in 2015
All-time low
927.49 hectares
in 2004
Years of data
24
2001–2024

Agriculture-driven deforestation in Sierra Leone, 2001–2024

010.0k20.0k30.0k2001201220242001: 4.0k hectares2002: 3.2k hectares2003: 2.3k hectares2004: 927.5 hectares2005: 2.2k hectares2006: 6.1k hectares2007: 4.9k hectares2008: 4.3k hectares2009: 6.1k hectares2010: 2.0k hectares2011: 8.3k hectares2012: 4.3k hectares2013: 28.3k hectares2014: 26.8k hectares2015: 31.9k hectares2016: 19.6k hectares2017: 27.7k hectares2018: 22.6k hectares2019: 21.0k hectares2020: 19.2k hectares2021: 13.6k hectares2022: 12.5k hectares2023: 13.2k hectares2024: 16.8k hectares

Source: Global Forest Watch (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.

Analysis

Sierra Leone recorded 16,830 hectares for agriculture-driven deforestation in 2024.

That represents a change of up 27.8% on the previous year and down 37.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, agriculture-driven deforestation in Sierra Leone peaked at 31,856 hectares in 2015 and was at its lowest, 927.49 hectares, in 2004.

That places Sierra Leone 39th out of 187 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 3,774 hectares 927.49 hectares 6,135 hectares 9
2010s 19,241 hectares 1,980 hectares 31,856 hectares 10
2020s 15,060 hectares 12,502 hectares 19,215 hectares 5

Countries ranked near Sierra Leone

  1. 36 Central African Republic 33,249 hectares compare
  2. 37 Guinea 32,983 hectares compare
  3. 38 Ethiopia 20,253 hectares compare
  4. 40 Panama 15,692 hectares compare
  5. 41 Guyana 13,014 hectares compare
  6. 42 Canada 12,630 hectares compare

See the full ranking of 187 places →

More environment data for Sierra Leone

All data for Sierra Leone →

Frequently asked questions

What is agriculture-driven deforestation in Sierra Leone?
Agriculture-driven deforestation in Sierra Leone was 16,830 hectares in 2024, according to Global Forest Watch (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest agriculture-driven deforestation recorded in Sierra Leone?
The highest recorded value was 31,856 hectares in 2015.
What is the lowest agriculture-driven deforestation recorded in Sierra Leone?
The lowest recorded value was 927.49 hectares in 2004.
How does Sierra Leone rank for agriculture-driven deforestation?
Sierra Leone ranks 39th out of 187 countries with data for 2024.
Is agriculture-driven deforestation rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
Over the last ten years it is down 37.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Sierra Leone data come from?
The figures come from Global Forest Watch (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Agriculture-driven deforestation. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Agriculture-driven deforestation
Unit
hectares
Source
Global Forest Watch (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
187 places, 4,269 data points, 2001–2024
Last refreshed

Long-term, permanent tree cover loss for small- to large-scale agriculture.