Lakes and rivers permanent water area in Africa
Africa: Lakes and rivers permanent water area was 0.5% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Lakes and rivers permanent water area in Africa, 2000–2022
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2022, lakes and rivers permanent water area in Africa stood at 0.5%. That is the highest value across all 23 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.3% on the previous year and up 1.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, lakes and rivers permanent water area in Africa peaked at 0.5% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 0.3%, in 2000.
Africa ranks 32nd of 37 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 23 years of available data.
Lakes and rivers permanent water area in Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 0.3% | — |
| 2001 | 0.4% | +3.3% |
| 2002 | 0.4% | +15.9% |
| 2003 | 0.5% | +8.5% |
| 2004 | 0.5% | +5.2% |
| 2005 | 0.5% | +0.1% |
| 2006 | 0.5% | -0.4% |
| 2007 | 0.5% | -0.5% |
| 2008 | 0.5% | +0.4% |
| 2009 | 0.5% | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 0.5% | +0.1% |
| 2011 | 0.5% | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 0.5% | +0.2% |
| 2013 | 0.5% | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 0.5% | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 0.5% | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 0.5% | +0.1% |
| 2017 | 0.5% | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 0.5% | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 0.5% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 0.5% | -0.1% |
| 2021 | 0.5% | +0.6% |
| 2022 | 0.5% | +1.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Africa
- 29 Norway 1.9% compare
- 30 Uzbekistan 1.9% compare
- 31 Cambodia 1.9% compare
- 32 Turks and Caicos Islands 1.8% compare
- 33 North Macedonia 1.8% compare
- 34 Iceland 1.6% compare
- 35 Democratic Republic of the Congo 1.5% compare
More environment data for Africa
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -7.12 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -7.93 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Temperature change 1.32 °C (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.213 °C (2025)
- Primary wood and paper products (export/import) — Export value 5.54 million 1000 USD (2024)
- Roundwood, coniferous — Production 32.26 million m3 (2024)
- Roundwood — Export value 714,851 1000 USD (2024)
- Roundwood — Export quantity 3.78 million m3 (2024)
- Roundwood — Import value 182,147 1000 USD (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is lakes and rivers permanent water area in Africa?
- Lakes and rivers permanent water area in Africa was 0.5% in 2022, according to United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database.
- What is the highest lakes and rivers permanent water area recorded in Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 0.5% in 2022.
- What is the lowest lakes and rivers permanent water area recorded in Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3% in 2000.
- How does Africa rank for lakes and rivers permanent water area?
- Africa ranks 32nd out of 37 groups with data for 2022.
- Is lakes and rivers permanent water area rising or falling in Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Africa data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database, published as part of Lakes and rivers permanent water area (% of total land area). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 23 observations, free to reuse under UN SDG Global Database (open, attribution requested).