Forest area in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Forest area was 631,837 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
631,837
Rank
10th
of 32 groups
All-time high
742,574
in 1990
All-time low
631,837
in 2025
Years of data
6
1990–2025
Forest area in Sub-Saharan Africa, 1990–2025
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database.
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 631,837 for forest area in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 6 years on record.
That represents a change of down 4.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest area in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 742,574 in 1990 and was at its lowest, 631,837, in 2025.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa 10th out of 32 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
Forest area in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 742,574 | — |
| 2000 | 711,591 | -4.2% |
| 2010 | 679,450 | -4.5% |
| 2015 | 659,670 | -2.9% |
| 2020 | 645,177 | -2.2% |
| 2025 | 631,837 | -2.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 742,574 | 742,574 | 742,574 | 1 |
| 2000s | 711,591 | 711,591 | 711,591 | 1 |
| 2010s | 669,560 | 659,670 | 679,450 | 2 |
| 2020s | 638,507 | 631,837 | 645,177 | 2 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
More environment data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -6.36 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -7.11 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.223 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.21 °C (2025)
- Nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF 305.43 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Aquaculture production 904,662 metric tons (2024)
- Nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) 2.29 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from Transport (Energy) 2.96 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Permanent meadows and pastures — Share in Agricultural land 72.81 % (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest area in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Forest area in Sub-Saharan Africa was 631,837 in 2025, according to United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database.
- What is the highest forest area recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 742,574 in 1990.
- What is the lowest forest area recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 631,837 in 2025.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for forest area?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 10th out of 32 groups with data for 2025.
- Is forest area rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database, published as part of Forest area (thousands of hectares). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 6 observations, free to reuse under UN SDG Global Database (open, attribution requested).