Share of land covered by forest in Namibia
Namibia: Share of land covered by forest was 9.8% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Share of land covered by forest in Namibia, 1990–2025
Source: Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (2013) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Namibia recorded 9.8% for share of land covered by forest in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 36 years on record.
The figure is down 0.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of land covered by forest in Namibia peaked at 10.7% in 1990 and was at its lowest, 9.8%, in 2025.
That places Namibia 170th out of 216 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 36 years of available data.
Share of land covered by forest in Namibia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 10.7% | — |
| 1991 | 10.6% | -0.8% |
| 1992 | 10.5% | -0.8% |
| 1993 | 10.4% | -0.8% |
| 1994 | 10.3% | -0.8% |
| 1995 | 10.2% | -0.8% |
| 1996 | 10.1% | -0.8% |
| 1997 | 10.0% | -0.9% |
| 1998 | 10.0% | -0.9% |
| 1999 | 9.9% | -0.9% |
| 2000 | 9.8% | -0.9% |
| 2001 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2002 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2003 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2004 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2005 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2006 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2007 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2008 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2009 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2010 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2011 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2012 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2013 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2014 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2015 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2016 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2017 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2018 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2019 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2020 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2021 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2022 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2023 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2024 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
| 2025 | 9.8% | -0.0% |
Namibia compared with similar countries
- Namibia's 9.8% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 25.2%, 39% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Namibia's 9.8% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 22.0%, 44% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 10.3% | 9.9% | 10.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 9.8% | 9.8% | 9.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 9.8% | 9.8% | 9.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.8% | 9.8% | 9.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Namibia
- 167 Turks and Caicos Islands 11.1% compare
- 168 Netherlands 11.0% compare
- 169 Burundi 10.9% compare
- 171 Mongolia 9.1% compare
- 172 Uzbekistan 8.8% compare
- 173 Sint Maarten (Dutch part) 8.8% compare
More environment data for Namibia
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -2.99 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -1.14 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.319 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 0.979 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.32 % 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 4.07 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of land covered by forest in Namibia?
- Share of land covered by forest in Namibia was 9.8% in 2025, according to Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (2013) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of land covered by forest recorded in Namibia?
- The highest recorded value was 10.7% in 1990.
- What is the lowest share of land covered by forest recorded in Namibia?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.8% in 2025.
- How does Namibia rank for share of land covered by forest?
- Namibia ranks 170th out of 216 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of land covered by forest rising or falling in Namibia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Namibia data come from?
- The figures come from Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (2013) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of land covered by forest. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 36 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of land area covered by forest, including both natural forests and forest plantations.