Share of forest area within protected areas in Nigeria
Nigeria: Share of forest area within protected areas was 22.3% in 2025. ▬ Flat
Share of forest area within protected areas in Nigeria, 1990–2025
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Nigeria recorded 22.3% for share of forest area within protected areas in 2025. That is the highest value across all 10 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of forest area within protected areas in Nigeria peaked at 22.3% in 1990 and was at its lowest, 22.3%, in 1990.
That places Nigeria 82nd out of 197 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
Share of forest area within protected areas in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 22.3% | — |
| 2000 | 22.3% | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 22.3% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 22.3% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 12.9% | -42.3% |
| 2017 | 12.9% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 12.9% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 12.9% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 22.3% | +73.3% |
| 2025 | 22.3% | +0.0% |
Nigeria compared with similar countries
- Nigeria's 22.3% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 17.4%, 1.3× the median. (42 countries reporting)
- Nigeria's 22.3% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 19.7%, 1.1× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 22.3% | 22.3% | 22.3% | 1 |
| 2000s | 22.3% | 22.3% | 22.3% | 1 |
| 2010s | 16.0% | 12.9% | 22.3% | 6 |
| 2020s | 22.3% | 22.3% | 22.3% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More environment data for Nigeria
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -5.73 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -5.07 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.281 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.15 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 3.78 % 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 0.4617 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of forest area within protected areas in Nigeria?
- Share of forest area within protected areas in Nigeria was 22.3% in 2025, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of forest area within protected areas recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 22.3% in 1990.
- What is the lowest share of forest area within protected areas recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 22.3% in 1990.
- How does Nigeria rank for share of forest area within protected areas?
- Nigeria ranks 82nd out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of forest area within protected areas rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Nigeria data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of forest area within protected areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 10 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Proportion of forest area within legally established protected areas (%).