Land use in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: Land use was 1.22 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
1.22 million hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
110th
of 224 countries
All-time high
1.22 million hectares
in 2017
All-time low
437,000 hectares
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Land use in Papua New Guinea, 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 Papua New Guinea stood at 1.22 million hectares. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.
The figure is up 10.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, land use in Papua New Guinea peaked at 1.22 million hectares in 2017 and was at its lowest, 437,000 hectares, in 1961.
Papua New Guinea ranks 110th of 224 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
Land use in Papua New Guinea, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 437,000 hectares | — |
| 1962 | 447,000 hectares | +2.3% |
| 1963 | 451,000 hectares | +0.9% |
| 1964 | 480,000 hectares | +6.4% |
| 1965 | 480,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 476,000 hectares | -0.8% |
| 1967 | 497,000 hectares | +4.4% |
| 1968 | 507,000 hectares | +2.0% |
| 1969 | 522,000 hectares | +3.0% |
| 1970 | 535,000 hectares | +2.5% |
| 1971 | 547,000 hectares | +2.2% |
| 1972 | 558,000 hectares | +2.0% |
| 1973 | 578,000 hectares | +3.6% |
| 1974 | 602,000 hectares | +4.2% |
| 1975 | 619,000 hectares | +2.8% |
| 1976 | 639,000 hectares | +3.2% |
| 1977 | 652,000 hectares | +2.0% |
| 1978 | 677,000 hectares | +3.8% |
| 1979 | 685,000 hectares | +1.2% |
| 1980 | 687,000 hectares | +0.3% |
| 1981 | 692,000 hectares | +0.7% |
| 1982 | 695,000 hectares | +0.4% |
| 1983 | 699,000 hectares | +0.6% |
| 1984 | 712,000 hectares | +1.9% |
| 1985 | 723,000 hectares | +1.5% |
| 1986 | 741,000 hectares | +2.5% |
| 1987 | 742,000 hectares | +0.1% |
| 1988 | 762,000 hectares | +2.7% |
| 1989 | 776,000 hectares | +1.8% |
| 1990 | 793,000 hectares | +2.2% |
| 1991 | 793,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 797,000 hectares | +0.5% |
| 1993 | 821,000 hectares | +3.0% |
| 1994 | 823,000 hectares | +0.2% |
| 1995 | 834,000 hectares | +1.3% |
| 1996 | 846,000 hectares | +1.4% |
| 1997 | 848,000 hectares | +0.2% |
| 1998 | 889,000 hectares | +4.8% |
| 1999 | 901,000 hectares | +1.3% |
| 2000 | 908,000 hectares | +0.8% |
| 2001 | 913,000 hectares | +0.6% |
| 2002 | 923,000 hectares | +1.1% |
| 2003 | 928,000 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2004 | 933,000 hectares | +0.5% |
| 2005 | 943,000 hectares | +1.1% |
| 2006 | 961,000 hectares | +1.9% |
| 2007 | 1.02 million hectares | +6.3% |
| 2008 | 1.05 million hectares | +3.2% |
| 2009 | 1.08 million hectares | +2.1% |
| 2010 | 1.08 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 1.10 million hectares | +1.8% |
| 2012 | 1.10 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 1.10 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 1.11 million hectares | +1.7% |
| 2015 | 1.13 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 1.14 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2017 | 1.22 million hectares | +6.8% |
| 2018 | 1.22 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 1.22 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 1.22 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 1.22 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 1.22 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 1.22 million hectares | +0.0% |
Papua New Guinea compared with similar countries
- Papua New Guinea's 1.22 million hectares is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 2.82 million hectares, 43% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Papua New Guinea's 1.22 million hectares is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 141,800 hectares, 8.6× the median. (36 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 477,444 hectares | 437,000 hectares | 522,000 hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 609,200 hectares | 535,000 hectares | 685,000 hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 722,900 hectares | 687,000 hectares | 776,000 hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 834,500 hectares | 793,000 hectares | 901,000 hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 966,300 hectares | 908,000 hectares | 1.08 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.14 million hectares | 1.08 million hectares | 1.22 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.22 million hectares | 1.22 million hectares | 1.22 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
More environment data for Papua New Guinea
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 1.56 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 2.24 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.183 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 0.834 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.9266 % 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 0.6032 % 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 Papua New Guinea?
- Land use in Papua New Guinea was 1.22 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 Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 1.22 million hectares in 2017.
- What is the lowest land use recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was 437,000 hectares in 1961.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for land use?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 110th out of 224 countries with data for 2023.
- Is land use rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea 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.
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