Commodity driven deforestation in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Commodity driven deforestation was 11,126 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
11,126
Change on year
down 0.5%
World rank
45th
of 187 countries
All-time high
15,543
in 2016
All-time low
2,832
in 2003
Years of data
24
2001–2024
Commodity driven deforestation in Sri Lanka, 2001–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for commodity driven deforestation in Sri Lanka is 11,126, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.5% on the previous year and up 0.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, commodity driven deforestation in Sri Lanka peaked at 15,543 in 2016 and was at its lowest, 2,832, in 2003.
That places Sri Lanka 45th out of 187 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
Commodity driven deforestation in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 3,256 | — |
| 2002 | 2,946 | -9.5% |
| 2003 | 2,832 | -3.9% |
| 2004 | 4,849 | +71.2% |
| 2005 | 3,746 | -22.7% |
| 2006 | 6,271 | +67.4% |
| 2007 | 8,990 | +43.3% |
| 2008 | 5,356 | -40.4% |
| 2009 | 12,340 | +130.4% |
| 2010 | 6,226 | -49.5% |
| 2011 | 13,321 | +113.9% |
| 2012 | 13,049 | -2.0% |
| 2013 | 7,009 | -46.3% |
| 2014 | 11,025 | +57.3% |
| 2015 | 6,552 | -40.6% |
| 2016 | 15,543 | +137.2% |
| 2017 | 11,021 | -29.1% |
| 2018 | 11,407 | +3.5% |
| 2019 | 9,179 | -19.5% |
| 2020 | 10,379 | +13.1% |
| 2021 | 12,370 | +19.2% |
| 2022 | 7,802 | -36.9% |
| 2023 | 11,181 | +43.3% |
| 2024 | 11,126 | -0.5% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 11,126 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 460.26, 24.2× the median. (51 countries reporting)
- Sri Lanka's 11,126 is above the median for South Asia, which is 1,708, 6.5× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 5,620 | 2,832 | 12,340 | 9 |
| 2010s | 10,433 | 6,226 | 15,543 | 10 |
| 2020s | 10,572 | 7,802 | 12,370 | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More environment data for Sri Lanka
- Grazing land use over the long-term, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per capita 0.0202 hectares per person (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 5.24 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 5.49 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.207 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 0.849 °C (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per square kilometre 7.11 hectares per square kilometre (2024)
- Sawnwood, coniferous — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is commodity driven deforestation in Sri Lanka?
- Commodity driven deforestation in Sri Lanka was 11,126 in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest commodity driven deforestation recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 15,543 in 2016.
- What is the lowest commodity driven deforestation recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 2,832 in 2003.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for commodity driven deforestation?
- Sri Lanka ranks 45th out of 187 countries with data for 2024.
- Is commodity driven deforestation rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Commodity 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).