Outdoor air pollution exposure in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: Outdoor air pollution exposure was 40 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
40
Change on year
up 3.9%
World rank
20th
of 241 countries
All-time high
40
in 2024
All-time low
20.7
in 1998
Years of data
27
1998–2024
Outdoor air pollution exposure in Afghanistan, 1998–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2024, outdoor air pollution exposure in Afghanistan stood at 40. That is the highest value across all 27 years on record.
The figure is up 3.9% on the previous year and up 25.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, outdoor air pollution exposure in Afghanistan peaked at 40 in 2024 and was at its lowest, 20.7, in 1998.
That places Afghanistan 20th out of 241 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.
Outdoor air pollution exposure in Afghanistan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 20.7 | — |
| 1999 | 23 | +11.1% |
| 2000 | 30.4 | +32.2% |
| 2001 | 35 | +15.1% |
| 2002 | 33.9 | -3.1% |
| 2003 | 34.1 | +0.6% |
| 2004 | 33 | -3.2% |
| 2005 | 29.6 | -10.3% |
| 2006 | 32.3 | +9.1% |
| 2007 | 32.2 | -0.3% |
| 2008 | 34.4 | +6.8% |
| 2009 | 31.7 | -7.8% |
| 2010 | 34.1 | +7.6% |
| 2011 | 37.4 | +9.7% |
| 2012 | 30.1 | -19.5% |
| 2013 | 32.6 | +8.3% |
| 2014 | 32 | -1.8% |
| 2015 | 33.7 | +5.3% |
| 2016 | 34.6 | +2.7% |
| 2017 | 32.1 | -7.2% |
| 2018 | 33.7 | +5.0% |
| 2019 | 31.8 | -5.6% |
| 2020 | 29.4 | -7.5% |
| 2021 | 34.7 | +18.0% |
| 2022 | 35.4 | +2.0% |
| 2023 | 38.5 | +8.8% |
| 2024 | 40 | +3.9% |
Afghanistan compared with similar countries
- Afghanistan's 40 is above the median for low income countries, which is 30.8, 1.3× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Afghanistan's 40 is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 34.1, 1.2× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 21.85 | 20.7 | 23 | 2 |
| 2000s | 32.66 | 29.6 | 35 | 10 |
| 2010s | 33.21 | 30.1 | 37.4 | 10 |
| 2020s | 35.6 | 29.4 | 40 | 5 |
Countries ranked near Afghanistan
More environment data for Afghanistan
- Grazing land use over the long-term, annual growth rate 0.2579 % change on previous year (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0.0017 hectares per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per capita 0.6968 hectares per person (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -19.95 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -17.12 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.547 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.96 °C (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per square kilometre 46.72 hectares per square kilometre (2024)
- Sawnwood, coniferous — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is outdoor air pollution exposure in Afghanistan?
- Outdoor air pollution exposure in Afghanistan was 40 in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest outdoor air pollution exposure recorded in Afghanistan?
- The highest recorded value was 40 in 2024.
- What is the lowest outdoor air pollution exposure recorded in Afghanistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 20.7 in 1998.
- How does Afghanistan rank for outdoor air pollution exposure?
- Afghanistan ranks 20th out of 241 countries with data for 2024.
- Is outdoor air pollution exposure rising or falling in Afghanistan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 25.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Afghanistan data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Outdoor air pollution exposure. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).