Share of land covered by forest in South Africa
South Africa: Share of land covered by forest was 18.9% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Share of land covered by forest in South Africa, 1990–2025
Source: Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (2013) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 18.9% for share of land covered by forest in 2025. That is the highest value across all 36 years on record.
The figure is up 0.4% on the previous year and up 4.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of land covered by forest in South Africa peaked at 18.9% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 16.3%, in 1990.
That places South Africa 135th out of 216 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.
Share of land covered by forest in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 16.3% | — |
| 1991 | 16.4% | +0.4% |
| 1992 | 16.5% | +0.4% |
| 1993 | 16.6% | +0.4% |
| 1994 | 16.6% | +0.4% |
| 1995 | 16.7% | +0.4% |
| 1996 | 16.8% | +0.4% |
| 1997 | 16.8% | +0.4% |
| 1998 | 16.9% | +0.4% |
| 1999 | 17.0% | +0.4% |
| 2000 | 17.1% | +0.4% |
| 2001 | 17.1% | +0.4% |
| 2002 | 17.2% | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 17.3% | +0.4% |
| 2004 | 17.3% | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 17.4% | +0.4% |
| 2006 | 17.5% | +0.4% |
| 2007 | 17.6% | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 17.6% | +0.4% |
| 2009 | 17.7% | +0.4% |
| 2010 | 17.8% | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 17.9% | +0.4% |
| 2012 | 17.9% | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 18.0% | +0.4% |
| 2014 | 18.1% | +0.4% |
| 2015 | 18.1% | +0.4% |
| 2016 | 18.2% | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 18.3% | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 18.4% | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 18.4% | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 18.5% | +0.4% |
| 2021 | 18.6% | +0.4% |
| 2022 | 18.6% | +0.4% |
| 2023 | 18.7% | +0.4% |
| 2024 | 18.8% | +0.4% |
| 2025 | 18.9% | +0.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 16.7% | 16.3% | 17.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 17.4% | 17.1% | 17.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 18.1% | 17.8% | 18.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 18.7% | 18.5% | 18.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More environment data for South Africa
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 5.46 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 8.52 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.275 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.05 °C (2025)
- Paper and paperboard — Import quantity, annual growth rate 20.46 % change on previous year (2024)
- Paper and paperboard — Import quantity, per unit of GDP 0 t per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Paper and paperboard — Import quantity, per capita 0.012 t per person (2024)
- Paper and paperboard — Import value, annual growth rate 3.25 % change on previous year (2024)
- Paper and paperboard — Import value, per unit of GDP 0 1000 USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of land covered by forest in South Africa?
- Share of land covered by forest in South Africa was 18.9% 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 South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 18.9% in 2025.
- What is the lowest share of land covered by forest recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 16.3% in 1990.
- How does South Africa rank for share of land covered by forest?
- South Africa ranks 135th out of 216 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of land covered by forest rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa 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.