Forest fires — Burned Area in Cameroon

Cameroon: Forest fires — Burned Area was 92,372 ha in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
92,372 ha
Change on year
down 4.5%
World rank
26th
of 219 countries
All-time high
377,462 ha
in 2003
All-time low
70,123 ha
in 2014
Years of data
35
1990–2024

Forest fires — Burned Area in Cameroon, 1990–2024

100.0k200.0k300.0k400.0k1990200720241990: 160.8k ha1991: 160.8k ha1992: 160.8k ha1993: 160.8k ha1994: 160.8k ha1995: 160.8k ha1996: 141.3k ha1997: 137.1k ha1998: 323.7k ha1999: 236.4k ha2000: 184.8k ha2001: 132.1k ha2002: 124.7k ha2003: 377.5k ha2004: 171.3k ha2005: 358.1k ha2006: 125.3k ha2007: 129.5k ha2008: 182.2k ha2009: 115.5k ha2010: 162.1k ha2011: 152.7k ha2012: 130.0k ha2013: 130.5k ha2014: 70.1k ha2015: 75.6k ha2016: 124.5k ha2017: 109.3k ha2018: 85.7k ha2019: 184.1k ha2020: 251.9k ha2021: 109.8k ha2022: 147.7k ha2023: 96.7k ha2024: 92.4k ha

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

Analysis

Cameroon recorded 92,372 ha for forest fires — burned area in 2024.

The figure is down 4.5% on the previous year and up 31.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, forest fires — burned area in Cameroon peaked at 377,462 ha in 2003 and was at its lowest, 70,123 ha, in 2014.

That places Cameroon 26th out of 219 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.

Forest fires — Burned Area in Cameroon, year by year

Annual values for Forest fires — Burned Area in Cameroon, 1990 to 2024.
Year ha Change
1990 160,779 ha —
1991 160,779 ha +0.0%
1992 160,779 ha +0.0%
1993 160,779 ha +0.0%
1994 160,779 ha +0.0%
1995 160,779 ha +0.0%
1996 141,338 ha -12.1%
1997 137,062 ha -3.0%
1998 323,714 ha +136.2%
1999 236,449 ha -27.0%
2000 184,812 ha -21.8%
2001 132,085 ha -28.5%
2002 124,666 ha -5.6%
2003 377,462 ha +202.8%
2004 171,279 ha -54.6%
2005 358,140 ha +109.1%
2006 125,286 ha -65.0%
2007 129,476 ha +3.3%
2008 182,219 ha +40.7%
2009 115,539 ha -36.6%
2010 162,090 ha +40.3%
2011 152,728 ha -5.8%
2012 130,011 ha -14.9%
2013 130,478 ha +0.4%
2014 70,123 ha -46.3%
2015 75,551 ha +7.7%
2016 124,474 ha +64.8%
2017 109,278 ha -12.2%
2018 85,726 ha -21.6%
2019 184,145 ha +114.8%
2020 251,917 ha +36.8%
2021 109,791 ha -56.4%
2022 147,663 ha +34.5%
2023 96,710 ha -34.5%
2024 92,372 ha -4.5%

Cameroon compared with similar countries

  • Cameroon's 92,372 ha is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 1,929 ha, 47.9× the median. (41 countries reporting)
  • Cameroon's 92,372 ha is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3,274 ha, 28.2× the median. (44 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Forest fires — Burned Area in Cameroon changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
2003 +202.8% 124,666 ha 377,462 ha

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 180,324 ha 137,062 ha 323,714 ha 10
2000s 190,096 ha 115,539 ha 377,462 ha 10
2010s 122,460 ha 70,123 ha 184,145 ha 10
2020s 139,691 ha 92,372 ha 251,917 ha 5

Countries ranked near Cameroon

  1. 23 Guatemala 115,586 ha compare
  2. 24 Honduras 115,054 ha compare
  3. 24 Caribbean 13,704 ha compare
  4. 25 Peru 112,510 ha compare
  5. 27 China 85,701 ha compare
  6. 27 China, mainland 85,701 ha compare
  7. 27 Côte d'Ivoire 1,154 ha compare
  8. 29 Cabo Verde 0 ha
  9. 29 Chad 83,816 ha compare

See the full ranking of 272 places →

More climate change data for Cameroon

All data for Cameroon →

Frequently asked questions

What is forest fires — burned area in Cameroon?
Forest fires — burned area in Cameroon was 92,372 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest forest fires — burned area recorded in Cameroon?
The highest recorded value was 377,462 ha in 2003.
What is the lowest forest fires — burned area recorded in Cameroon?
The lowest recorded value was 70,123 ha in 2014.
How does Cameroon rank for forest fires — burned area?
Cameroon ranks 26th out of 219 countries with data for 2024.
Is forest fires — burned area rising or falling in Cameroon?
Over the last ten years it is up 31.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Cameroon data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Forest fires — Burned Area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Forest fires — Burned Area in Cameroon. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 26 September 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/stat/forest-fires-burned-area-fao-tier-1/cameroon/

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About this data

Indicator
Forest fires — Burned Area
Unit
ha
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
272 places, 9,294 data points, 1990–2024
Last refreshed

The FAOSTAT domain on Emissions from Fires consists of estimates of methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O) and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions generated from biomass burning in a range of vegetation types and from fires in organic soils.