Land use in Cameroon
Cameroon: Land use was 7.90 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
7.90 million hectares
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
43rd
of 224 countries
All-time high
7.90 million hectares
in 2023
All-time low
5.51 million hectares
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Land use in Cameroon, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2023, land use in Cameroon stood at 7.90 million hectares. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.3% on the previous year and up 1.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, land use in Cameroon peaked at 7.90 million hectares in 2023 and was at its lowest, 5.51 million hectares, in 1961.
That places Cameroon 43rd out of 224 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
Land use in Cameroon, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 5.51 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 5.57 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1963 | 5.62 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 1964 | 5.68 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1965 | 5.74 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1966 | 5.80 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 1967 | 5.87 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 1968 | 5.92 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 1969 | 5.97 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1970 | 5.98 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1971 | 6.03 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1972 | 6.09 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1973 | 6.16 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1974 | 6.28 million hectares | +1.9% |
| 1975 | 6.39 million hectares | +1.8% |
| 1976 | 6.51 million hectares | +1.8% |
| 1977 | 6.64 million hectares | +2.1% |
| 1978 | 6.67 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 1979 | 6.91 million hectares | +3.6% |
| 1980 | 6.93 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 1981 | 6.96 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 1982 | 7.01 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1983 | 7.06 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1984 | 7.11 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1985 | 7.16 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1986 | 7.23 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 1987 | 7.21 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1988 | 7.21 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 7.19 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1990 | 7.17 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1991 | 7.15 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1992 | 7.16 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 7.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 7.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 7.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 7.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 7.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 7.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 7.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 7.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 7.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 7.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 7.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 7.21 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 2005 | 7.21 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 7.21 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 7.21 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 7.26 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 2009 | 7.31 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 7.70 million hectares | +5.3% |
| 2011 | 7.75 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 7.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 7.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 7.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 7.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 7.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 7.77 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 7.79 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 7.81 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 7.83 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 7.85 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 7.88 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 7.90 million hectares | +0.3% |
Cameroon compared with similar countries
- Cameroon's 7.90 million hectares is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 2.82 million hectares, 2.8× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Cameroon's 7.90 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.21 million hectares, 2.5× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 5.74 million hectares | 5.51 million hectares | 5.97 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 6.37 million hectares | 5.98 million hectares | 6.91 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 7.11 million hectares | 6.93 million hectares | 7.23 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 7.16 million hectares | 7.15 million hectares | 7.17 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 7.21 million hectares | 7.16 million hectares | 7.31 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.76 million hectares | 7.70 million hectares | 7.81 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.87 million hectares | 7.83 million hectares | 7.90 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Cameroon
More environment data for Cameroon
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -8.11 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -7.68 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.211 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.15 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.6539 % 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 0.4385 % 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 land use in Cameroon?
- Land use in Cameroon was 7.90 million hectares in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest land use recorded in Cameroon?
- The highest recorded value was 7.90 million hectares in 2023.
- What is the lowest land use recorded in Cameroon?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.51 million hectares in 1961.
- How does Cameroon rank for land use?
- Cameroon ranks 43rd out of 224 countries with data for 2023.
- Is land use rising or falling in Cameroon?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Cameroon 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 Land use. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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