Forest area in Central African Republic
Central African Republic: Forest area was 45.09 million hectares in 2025. ▬ Flat
Latest (2025)
45.09 million hectares
Change on year
down 0.1%
World rank
17th
of 235 countries
All-time high
46.43 million hectares
in 1990
All-time low
45.09 million hectares
in 2025
Years of data
36
1990–2025
Forest area in Central African Republic, 1990–2025
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2025, forest area in Central African Republic stood at 45.09 million hectares. That is the lowest value across all 36 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.1% on the previous year and down 1.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest area in Central African Republic peaked at 46.43 million hectares in 1990 and was at its lowest, 45.09 million hectares, in 2025.
That places Central African Republic 17th out of 235 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
Forest area in Central African Republic, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 46.43 million hectares | — |
| 1991 | 46.40 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1992 | 46.36 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1993 | 46.33 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1994 | 46.29 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1995 | 46.26 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1996 | 46.23 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1997 | 46.19 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 46.16 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1999 | 46.12 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 46.09 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 46.05 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2002 | 46.02 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 45.98 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 45.95 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2005 | 45.91 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2006 | 45.88 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2007 | 45.84 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 45.81 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 45.77 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2010 | 45.74 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 45.70 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 45.67 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 45.63 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 45.60 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 45.56 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2016 | 45.51 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 45.47 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 45.42 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 45.37 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 45.33 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2021 | 45.28 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2022 | 45.23 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 45.19 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2024 | 45.14 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2025 | 45.09 million hectares | -0.1% |
Central African Republic compared with similar countries
- Central African Republic's 45.09 million hectares is above the median for low income countries, which is 3.24 million hectares, 13.9× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Central African Republic's 45.09 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 4.37 million hectares, 10.3× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 46.28 million hectares | 46.12 million hectares | 46.43 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 45.93 million hectares | 45.77 million hectares | 46.09 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 45.57 million hectares | 45.37 million hectares | 45.74 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 45.21 million hectares | 45.09 million hectares | 45.33 million hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near Central African Republic
More environment data for Central African Republic
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -17.69 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -17.75 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.218 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.3 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 5.22 % 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 1.2 % 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 forest area in Central African Republic?
- Forest area in Central African Republic was 45.09 million hectares 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 forest area recorded in Central African Republic?
- The highest recorded value was 46.43 million hectares in 1990.
- What is the lowest forest area recorded in Central African Republic?
- The lowest recorded value was 45.09 million hectares in 2025.
- How does Central African Republic rank for forest area?
- Central African Republic ranks 17th out of 235 countries with data for 2025.
- Is forest area rising or falling in Central African Republic?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Central African Republic 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 Forest area. 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
Forest area is land under natural or planted stands of trees of at least 5 meters in situ, whether productive or not, and excludes tree stands in agricultural production systems.