Naturally regenerating forest — Share in Forest land in South Africa

South Africa: Naturally regenerating forest — Share in Forest land was 89.41 % in 2025. ▬ Flat

Latest (2025)
89.41 %
Change on year
down 0.0%
World rank
135th
of 206 countries
All-time high
90.34 %
in 1990
All-time low
89.41 %
in 2025
Years of data
36
1990–2025

Naturally regenerating forest — Share in Forest land in South Africa, 1990–2025

0204060801001990200720251990: 90.3 %1991: 90.3 %1992: 90.3 %1993: 90.2 %1994: 90.2 %1995: 90.2 %1996: 90.2 %1997: 90.1 %1998: 90.1 %1999: 90.1 %2000: 90 %2001: 90 %2002: 90 %2003: 90 %2004: 89.9 %2005: 89.9 %2006: 89.9 %2007: 89.8 %2008: 89.8 %2009: 89.8 %2010: 89.8 %2011: 89.8 %2012: 89.7 %2013: 89.7 %2014: 89.7 %2015: 89.7 %2016: 89.6 %2017: 89.6 %2018: 89.6 %2019: 89.5 %2020: 89.5 %2021: 89.5 %2022: 89.5 %2023: 89.5 %2024: 89.4 %2025: 89.4 %

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in %.

Analysis

South Africa recorded 89.41 % for naturally regenerating forest — share in forest land in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 36 years on record.

That represents a change of down 0.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, naturally regenerating forest — share in forest land in South Africa peaked at 90.34 % in 1990 and was at its lowest, 89.41 %, in 2025.

That places South Africa 135th out of 206 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.

Naturally regenerating forest — Share in Forest land in South Africa, year by year

Annual values for Naturally regenerating forest — Share in Forest land in South Africa, 1990 to 2025.
Year % Change
1990 90.34 %
1991 90.3 % -0.0%
1992 90.27 % -0.0%
1993 90.24 % -0.0%
1994 90.22 % -0.0%
1995 90.19 % -0.0%
1996 90.16 % -0.0%
1997 90.13 % -0.0%
1998 90.1 % -0.0%
1999 90.07 % -0.0%
2000 90.04 % -0.0%
2001 90.01 % -0.0%
2002 89.99 % -0.0%
2003 89.96 % -0.0%
2004 89.93 % -0.0%
2005 89.91 % -0.0%
2006 89.88 % -0.0%
2007 89.85 % -0.0%
2008 89.83 % -0.0%
2009 89.8 % -0.0%
2010 89.77 % -0.0%
2011 89.75 % -0.0%
2012 89.72 % -0.0%
2013 89.7 % -0.0%
2014 89.67 % -0.0%
2015 89.65 % -0.0%
2016 89.62 % -0.0%
2017 89.6 % -0.0%
2018 89.57 % -0.0%
2019 89.55 % -0.0%
2020 89.53 % -0.0%
2021 89.5 % -0.0%
2022 89.48 % -0.0%
2023 89.46 % -0.0%
2024 89.43 % -0.0%
2025 89.41 % -0.0%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 90.2 % 90.07 % 90.34 % 10
2000s 89.92 % 89.8 % 90.04 % 10
2010s 89.66 % 89.55 % 89.77 % 10
2020s 89.47 % 89.41 % 89.53 % 6

Countries ranked near South Africa

  1. 132 Morocco 89.7 % compare
  2. 133 Estonia 89.61 % compare
  3. 134 OECD 89.43 % compare
  4. 136 Sri Lanka 88.85 % compare
  5. 137 Palestine, State of 87.93 % compare
  6. 138 Kazakhstan 87.76 % compare

See the full ranking of 258 places →

More environment data for South Africa

All data for South Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is naturally regenerating forest — share in forest land in South Africa?
Naturally regenerating forest — share in forest land in South Africa was 89.41 % in 2025, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest naturally regenerating forest — share in forest land recorded in South Africa?
The highest recorded value was 90.34 % in 1990.
What is the lowest naturally regenerating forest — share in forest land recorded in South Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 89.41 % in 2025.
How does South Africa rank for naturally regenerating forest — share in forest land?
South Africa ranks 135th out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
Is naturally regenerating forest — share in forest land rising or falling in South Africa?
Over the last ten years it is down 0.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this South Africa data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Naturally regenerating forest — Share in Forest land. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Naturally regenerating forest — Share in Forest land in South Africa. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 23 August 2026, from https://environment.statizoid.com/stat/naturally-regenerating-forest-share-in-forest-land/south-africa/

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About this data

Indicator
Naturally regenerating forest — Share in Forest land
Unit
%
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
258 places, 8,989 data points, 1990–2025
Last refreshed

The FAOSTAT Land Use domain contains data on twenty-one land use categories and twenty-three categories of irrigation and agricultural practices. Data are available yearly and by country, regional and global levels. The domain includes Land Use Indicators providing information on the percentage share of agricultural and forest land, and their sub-components, including irrigated areas and areas under organic agriculture, within a country land use matrix. Data are available at country, regional and global level, for the following elements: (in percentage) i) Share in Land area; ii) Share in Agricultural land, iii) Share in Cropland; and iv) Share in Forest land; (in ha/pc) v) Area per capita.