Primary Forest — Area in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Primary Forest — Area was 71.07 1000 ha in 2025. ▼ Falling
Primary Forest — Area in Sierra Leone, 1990–2025
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in 1000 ha.
Analysis
Sierra Leone recorded 71.07 1000 ha for primary forest — area in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 36 years on record.
The figure is down 16.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, primary forest — area in Sierra Leone peaked at 224 1000 ha in 1990 and was at its lowest, 71.07 1000 ha, in 2020.
Sierra Leone ranks 76th of 182 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 36 years of available data.
Primary Forest — Area in Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | 1000 ha | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 224 1000 ha | — |
| 1991 | 217.3 1000 ha | -3.0% |
| 1992 | 210.6 1000 ha | -3.1% |
| 1993 | 203.9 1000 ha | -3.2% |
| 1994 | 197.2 1000 ha | -3.3% |
| 1995 | 190.5 1000 ha | -3.4% |
| 1996 | 183.8 1000 ha | -3.5% |
| 1997 | 177.1 1000 ha | -3.6% |
| 1998 | 170.4 1000 ha | -3.8% |
| 1999 | 163.7 1000 ha | -3.9% |
| 2000 | 157 1000 ha | -4.1% |
| 2001 | 152.6 1000 ha | -2.8% |
| 2002 | 148.2 1000 ha | -2.9% |
| 2003 | 143.8 1000 ha | -3.0% |
| 2004 | 139.4 1000 ha | -3.1% |
| 2005 | 135 1000 ha | -3.2% |
| 2006 | 130.6 1000 ha | -3.3% |
| 2007 | 126.2 1000 ha | -3.4% |
| 2008 | 121.8 1000 ha | -3.5% |
| 2009 | 117.4 1000 ha | -3.6% |
| 2010 | 113 1000 ha | -3.7% |
| 2011 | 107.4 1000 ha | -5.0% |
| 2012 | 101.8 1000 ha | -5.2% |
| 2013 | 96.2 1000 ha | -5.5% |
| 2014 | 90.6 1000 ha | -5.8% |
| 2015 | 85 1000 ha | -6.2% |
| 2016 | 82.21 1000 ha | -3.3% |
| 2017 | 79.43 1000 ha | -3.4% |
| 2018 | 76.64 1000 ha | -3.5% |
| 2019 | 73.86 1000 ha | -3.6% |
| 2020 | 71.07 1000 ha | -3.8% |
| 2021 | 71.07 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 71.07 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 71.07 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 71.07 1000 ha | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 71.07 1000 ha | +0.0% |
Sierra Leone compared with similar countries
- Sierra Leone's 71.07 1000 ha is above the median for low income countries, which is 65.28 1000 ha, 1.1× the median. (14 countries reporting)
- Sierra Leone's 71.07 1000 ha is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 220 1000 ha, 32% of the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 193.85 1000 ha | 163.7 1000 ha | 224 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2000s | 137.2 1000 ha | 117.4 1000 ha | 157 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2010s | 90.61 1000 ha | 73.86 1000 ha | 113 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2020s | 71.07 1000 ha | 71.07 1000 ha | 71.07 1000 ha | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
More environment data for Sierra Leone
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -5.4 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -5.39 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.232 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.28 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 1.72 % 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 1.11 % 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 primary forest — area in Sierra Leone?
- Primary forest — area in Sierra Leone was 71.07 1000 ha in 2025, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest primary forest — area recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 224 1000 ha in 1990.
- What is the lowest primary forest — area recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was 71.07 1000 ha in 2020.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for primary forest — area?
- Sierra Leone ranks 76th out of 182 countries with data for 2025.
- Is primary forest — area rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is down 16.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sierra Leone data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Primary 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.