Forest fires — Burned Area in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Forest fires — Burned Area was 9,320 ha in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Forest fires — Burned Area in Sierra Leone, 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 Sierra Leone is 9,320 ha, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 135.7% on the previous year and down 9.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest fires — burned area in Sierra Leone peaked at 43,606 ha in 2015 and was at its lowest, 171.02 ha, in 2002.
That places Sierra Leone 52nd out of 219 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Forest fires — Burned Area in Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | ha | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 7,978 ha | — |
| 1991 | 7,978 ha | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 7,978 ha | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 7,978 ha | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 7,978 ha | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 7,978 ha | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 6,584 ha | -17.5% |
| 1997 | 9,454 ha | +43.6% |
| 1998 | 21,039 ha | +122.5% |
| 1999 | 14,932 ha | -29.0% |
| 2000 | 13,758 ha | -7.9% |
| 2001 | 2,779 ha | -79.8% |
| 2002 | 171.02 ha | -93.8% |
| 2003 | 12,163 ha | +7011.9% |
| 2004 | 7,460 ha | -38.7% |
| 2005 | 5,023 ha | -32.7% |
| 2006 | 12,249 ha | +143.8% |
| 2007 | 6,712 ha | -45.2% |
| 2008 | 2,394 ha | -64.3% |
| 2009 | 5,879 ha | +145.5% |
| 2010 | 2,373 ha | -59.6% |
| 2011 | 2,245 ha | -5.4% |
| 2012 | 5,793 ha | +158.1% |
| 2013 | 5,815 ha | +0.4% |
| 2014 | 10,303 ha | +77.2% |
| 2015 | 43,606 ha | +323.2% |
| 2016 | 3,634 ha | -91.7% |
| 2017 | 7,054 ha | +94.1% |
| 2018 | 2,437 ha | -65.5% |
| 2019 | 3,206 ha | +31.6% |
| 2020 | 1,817 ha | -43.3% |
| 2021 | 2,758 ha | +51.8% |
| 2022 | 6,456 ha | +134.1% |
| 2023 | 3,955 ha | -38.7% |
| 2024 | 9,320 ha | +135.7% |
Sierra Leone compared with similar countries
- Sierra Leone's 9,320 ha is above the median for low income countries, which is 1,988 ha, 4.7× the median. (22 countries reporting)
- Sierra Leone's 9,320 ha is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3,274 ha, 2.8× the median. (44 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Forest fires — Burned Area in Sierra Leone 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 | +7011.9% | 171.02 ha | 12,163 ha |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 9,988 ha | 6,584 ha | 21,039 ha | 10 |
| 2000s | 6,859 ha | 171.02 ha | 13,758 ha | 10 |
| 2010s | 8,647 ha | 2,245 ha | 43,606 ha | 10 |
| 2020s | 4,861 ha | 1,817 ha | 9,320 ha | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
More climate change data for Sierra Leone
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 3.65 million kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 1,547 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 538.77 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 1,008 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 2.03 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 36.02 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 1,431 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 201.66 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 1,229 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 0.761 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest fires — burned area in Sierra Leone?
- Forest fires — burned area in Sierra Leone was 9,320 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest forest fires — burned area recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 43,606 ha in 2015.
- What is the lowest forest fires — burned area recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was 171.02 ha in 2002.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for forest fires — burned area?
- Sierra Leone ranks 52nd out of 219 countries with data for 2024.
- Is forest fires — burned area rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sierra Leone 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.