Lakes and rivers permanent water area change in Developing regions
Developing regions: Lakes and rivers permanent water area change was 5.5% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Lakes and rivers permanent water area change in Developing regions, 2005–2022
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for lakes and rivers permanent water area change in Developing regions is 5.5%, measured in 2022. That is the highest value across all 18 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.4% on the previous year and up 149.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, lakes and rivers permanent water area change in Developing regions peaked at 5.5% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 1.7%, in 2014.
Developing regions ranks 18th of 38 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 18 years of available data.
Lakes and rivers permanent water area change in Developing regions, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 3.5% | — |
| 2006 | 3.5% | -1.0% |
| 2007 | 3.5% | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 3.7% | +5.3% |
| 2009 | 3.4% | -7.8% |
| 2010 | 3.0% | -13.4% |
| 2011 | 2.6% | -13.7% |
| 2012 | 2.2% | -13.8% |
| 2013 | 1.8% | -18.3% |
| 2014 | 1.7% | -3.3% |
| 2015 | 1.8% | +2.8% |
| 2016 | 2.2% | +23.8% |
| 2017 | 2.8% | +27.8% |
| 2018 | 3.8% | +32.7% |
| 2019 | 4.4% | +17.1% |
| 2020 | 5.1% | +15.5% |
| 2021 | 5.4% | +5.9% |
| 2022 | 5.5% | +2.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3.5% | 3.4% | 3.7% | 5 |
| 2010s | 2.6% | 1.7% | 4.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.3% | 5.1% | 5.5% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Developing regions
More environment data for Developing regions
- Average proportion of Freshwater Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) 33.1% (2025)
- Average proportion of Mountain Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) covered 33.8% (2025)
- Average proportion of Terrestrial Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) 33.5% (2025)
- Average proportion of Marine Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) covered by 36.0% (2025)
- Total official development assistance (gross disbursement) for water 9,640 million constant US$ (2024)
- Total official development assistance for biodiversity, by recipient 13,672 million constant US$ (2024)
- Lakes and rivers permanent water area 869,284 kmsq (2022)
- Lakes and rivers seasonal water area 566,689 kmsq (2022)
- Reservoir minimum water area 178,897 kmsq (2022)
- Reservoir maximum water area 217,541 kmsq (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is lakes and rivers permanent water area change in Developing regions?
- Lakes and rivers permanent water area change in Developing regions was 5.5% in 2022, according to United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database.
- What is the highest lakes and rivers permanent water area change recorded in Developing regions?
- The highest recorded value was 5.5% in 2022.
- What is the lowest lakes and rivers permanent water area change recorded in Developing regions?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.7% in 2014.
- How does Developing regions rank for lakes and rivers permanent water area change?
- Developing regions ranks 18th out of 38 groups with data for 2022.
- Is lakes and rivers permanent water area change rising or falling in Developing regions?
- Over the last ten years it is up 149.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Developing regions data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database, published as part of Lakes and rivers permanent water area change (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 18 observations, free to reuse under UN SDG Global Database (open, attribution requested).