Planted Forest — Area in South Africa
South Africa: Planted Forest — Area was 2,423 1000 ha in 2025. ▲ Rising
Planted Forest — Area in South Africa, 1990–2025
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in 1000 ha.
Analysis
In 2025, planted forest — area in South Africa stood at 2,423 1000 ha. That is the highest value across all 36 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.6% on the previous year and up 6.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, planted forest — area in South Africa peaked at 2,423 1000 ha in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1,915 1000 ha, in 1990.
That places South Africa 29th out of 207 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.
Planted Forest — Area in South Africa, year by year
| Year | 1000 ha | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 1,915 1000 ha | — |
| 1991 | 1,930 1000 ha | +0.8% |
| 1992 | 1,944 1000 ha | +0.8% |
| 1993 | 1,959 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 1994 | 1,973 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 1995 | 1,988 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 1996 | 2,002 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 1997 | 2,017 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 1998 | 2,031 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 1999 | 2,046 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2000 | 2,060 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2001 | 2,075 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 2,089 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2003 | 2,104 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2004 | 2,118 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2005 | 2,133 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2006 | 2,147 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 2,162 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2008 | 2,176 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2009 | 2,191 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 2,206 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2011 | 2,220 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2012 | 2,235 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 2,249 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2014 | 2,264 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2015 | 2,278 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2016 | 2,293 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 2,307 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 2,322 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 2,336 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 2,351 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 2,365 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2022 | 2,380 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2023 | 2,394 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2024 | 2,409 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2025 | 2,423 1000 ha | +0.6% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 2,423 1000 ha is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 224.08 1000 ha, 10.8× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 2,423 1000 ha is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 111.45 1000 ha, 21.7× the median. (41 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 1,981 1000 ha | 1,915 1000 ha | 2,046 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2000s | 2,126 1000 ha | 2,060 1000 ha | 2,191 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2010s | 2,271 1000 ha | 2,206 1000 ha | 2,336 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2020s | 2,387 1000 ha | 2,351 1000 ha | 2,423 1000 ha | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More environment data for South Africa
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 5.46 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 8.52 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.275 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.05 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.59 % 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 0.2953 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is planted forest — area in South Africa?
- Planted forest — area in South Africa was 2,423 1000 ha in 2025, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest planted forest — area recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 2,423 1000 ha in 2025.
- What is the lowest planted forest — area recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 1,915 1000 ha in 1990.
- How does South Africa rank for planted forest — area?
- South Africa ranks 29th out of 207 countries with data for 2025.
- Is planted forest — area rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Planted Forest — Area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 36 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).
About this data
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.