Forest fires — Burned Area in Congo
Congo: Forest fires — Burned Area was 165,085 ha in 2024. ▲ Rising
Forest fires — Burned Area in Congo, 1990–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in ha.
Analysis
The most recent figure for forest fires — burned area in Congo is 165,085 ha, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of up 271.9% on the previous year and up 630.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest fires — burned area in Congo peaked at 165,085 ha in 2024 and was at its lowest, 14,297 ha, in 2002.
Congo ranks 18th of 219 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Forest fires — Burned Area in Congo, year by year
| Year | ha | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 52,440 ha | — |
| 1991 | 52,440 ha | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 52,440 ha | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 52,440 ha | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 52,440 ha | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 52,440 ha | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 38,131 ha | -27.3% |
| 1997 | 35,729 ha | -6.3% |
| 1998 | 28,815 ha | -19.4% |
| 1999 | 32,262 ha | +12.0% |
| 2000 | 25,541 ha | -20.8% |
| 2001 | 27,567 ha | +7.9% |
| 2002 | 14,297 ha | -48.1% |
| 2003 | 69,987 ha | +389.5% |
| 2004 | 52,720 ha | -24.7% |
| 2005 | 52,549 ha | -0.3% |
| 2006 | 66,034 ha | +25.7% |
| 2007 | 46,630 ha | -29.4% |
| 2008 | 35,496 ha | -23.9% |
| 2009 | 36,180 ha | +1.9% |
| 2010 | 62,444 ha | +72.6% |
| 2011 | 79,176 ha | +26.8% |
| 2012 | 48,852 ha | -38.3% |
| 2013 | 43,403 ha | -11.2% |
| 2014 | 22,610 ha | -47.9% |
| 2015 | 53,126 ha | +135.0% |
| 2016 | 88,088 ha | +65.8% |
| 2017 | 32,290 ha | -63.3% |
| 2018 | 69,539 ha | +115.4% |
| 2019 | 74,368 ha | +6.9% |
| 2020 | 60,712 ha | -18.4% |
| 2021 | 41,693 ha | -31.3% |
| 2022 | 73,043 ha | +75.2% |
| 2023 | 44,386 ha | -39.2% |
| 2024 | 165,085 ha | +271.9% |
Congo compared with similar countries
- Congo's 165,085 ha is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 1,929 ha, 85.6× the median. (41 countries reporting)
- Congo's 165,085 ha is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3,274 ha, 50.4× the median. (44 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Forest fires — Burned Area in Congo 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.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | +389.5% | 14,297 ha | 69,987 ha |
| 2024 | +271.9% | 44,386 ha | 165,085 ha |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 44,958 ha | 28,815 ha | 52,440 ha | 10 |
| 2000s | 42,700 ha | 14,297 ha | 69,987 ha | 10 |
| 2010s | 57,390 ha | 22,610 ha | 88,088 ha | 10 |
| 2020s | 76,984 ha | 41,693 ha | 165,085 ha | 5 |
Countries ranked near Congo
- 15 Iran (Islamic Republic of) 0 ha compare
- 15 Micronesia (Federated States of) 0 ha
- 15 Republic of Moldova 0 ha compare
- 15 South Sudan 289,236 ha compare
- 15 Syrian Arab Republic 0 ha compare
- 15 Wallis and Futuna Islands 0 ha
- 15 Micronesia 0 ha
- 15 Polynesia 0 ha compare
- 16 Sudan (former) 276,002 ha compare
- 17 Paraguay 178,192 ha compare
- 19 Ethiopia 140,455 ha compare
- 20 Australia and New Zealand 126,361 ha compare
- 21 Australia 125,716 ha compare
More climate change data for Congo
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 226,333 kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 762.73 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 278.7 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 484.03 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 1.05 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 17.29 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 13.23 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 6.62 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 6.61 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 0.025 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest fires — burned area in Congo?
- Forest fires — burned area in Congo was 165,085 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest forest fires — burned area recorded in Congo?
- The highest recorded value was 165,085 ha in 2024.
- What is the lowest forest fires — burned area recorded in Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was 14,297 ha in 2002.
- How does Congo rank for forest fires — burned area?
- Congo ranks 18th out of 219 countries with data for 2024.
- Is forest fires — burned area rising or falling in Congo?
- Over the last ten years it is up 630.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Congo 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).
About this data
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.