Forest fires — Emissions in Congo

Congo: Forest fires — Emissions was 20.54 kt in 2024. ▬ Flat

Latest (2024)
20.54 kt
Change on year
up 271.9%
World rank
18th
of 219 countries
All-time high
20.54 kt
in 2024
All-time low
1.78 kt
in 2002
Years of data
35
1990–2024

Forest fires — Emissions in Congo, 1990–2024

051015201990200720241990: 7.9 kt1991: 7.9 kt1992: 7.9 kt1993: 7.9 kt1994: 7.9 kt1995: 7.9 kt1996: 14 kt1997: 13.1 kt1998: 10.6 kt1999: 11.9 kt2000: 9.4 kt2001: 3.4 kt2002: 1.8 kt2003: 8.7 kt2004: 6.6 kt2005: 6.5 kt2006: 8.2 kt2007: 5.8 kt2008: 4.4 kt2009: 4.5 kt2010: 7.8 kt2011: 9.9 kt2012: 6.1 kt2013: 5.4 kt2014: 2.8 kt2015: 6.6 kt2016: 11 kt2017: 4 kt2018: 8.7 kt2019: 9.3 kt2020: 7.6 kt2021: 5.2 kt2022: 9.1 kt2023: 5.5 kt2024: 20.5 kt

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

Analysis

Congo recorded 20.54 kt for forest fires — emissions 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 — emissions in Congo peaked at 20.54 kt in 2024 and was at its lowest, 1.78 kt, in 2002.

That places Congo 18th out of 219 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.

Forest fires — Emissions in Congo, year by year

Annual values for Forest fires — Emissions (CH4) in Congo, 1990 to 2024.
Year kt Change
1990 7.87 kt —
1991 7.87 kt +0.0%
1992 7.87 kt +0.0%
1993 7.87 kt +0.0%
1994 7.87 kt +0.0%
1995 7.87 kt +0.0%
1996 14.03 kt +78.2%
1997 13.14 kt -6.3%
1998 10.6 kt -19.4%
1999 11.87 kt +12.0%
2000 9.4 kt -20.8%
2001 3.43 kt -63.5%
2002 1.78 kt -48.1%
2003 8.71 kt +389.5%
2004 6.56 kt -24.7%
2005 6.54 kt -0.3%
2006 8.21 kt +25.6%
2007 5.8 kt -29.3%
2008 4.41 kt -24.0%
2009 4.5 kt +2.0%
2010 7.77 kt +72.6%
2011 9.85 kt +26.8%
2012 6.08 kt -38.3%
2013 5.4 kt -11.2%
2014 2.81 kt -47.9%
2015 6.61 kt +134.9%
2016 10.96 kt +65.9%
2017 4.02 kt -63.3%
2018 8.65 kt +115.4%
2019 9.25 kt +6.9%
2020 7.55 kt -18.4%
2021 5.19 kt -31.3%
2022 9.09 kt +75.2%
2023 5.52 kt -39.2%
2024 20.54 kt +271.9%

Congo compared with similar countries

  • Congo's 20.54 kt is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.2265 kt, 90.7× the median. (41 countries reporting)
  • Congo's 20.54 kt is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.3894 kt, 52.7× the median. (44 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Forest fires — Emissions 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.

YearChange FromTo
2003 +389.5% 1.78 kt 8.71 kt
2024 +271.9% 5.52 kt 20.54 kt

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 9.69 kt 7.87 kt 14.03 kt 10
2000s 5.93 kt 1.78 kt 9.4 kt 10
2010s 7.14 kt 2.81 kt 10.96 kt 10
2020s 9.58 kt 5.19 kt 20.54 kt 5

Countries ranked near Congo

  1. 15 Iran (Islamic Republic of) 0 kt compare
  2. 15 Micronesia (Federated States of) 0 kt
  3. 15 Republic of Moldova 0 kt compare
  4. 15 South Sudan 35.94 kt compare
  5. 15 Syrian Arab Republic 0 kt compare
  6. 15 Wallis and Futuna Islands 0 kt
  7. 15 Micronesia 0 kt
  8. 15 Polynesia 0 kt compare
  9. 16 Sudan (former) 34.33 kt compare
  10. 17 Paraguay 21.12 kt compare
  11. 19 Ethiopia 16.42 kt compare
  12. 20 Australia and New Zealand 14.68 kt compare
  13. 21 Australia 14.61 kt compare

See the full ranking of 272 places →

More climate change data for Congo

All data for Congo →

Frequently asked questions

What is forest fires — emissions in Congo?
Forest fires — emissions in Congo was 20.54 kt in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest forest fires — emissions recorded in Congo?
The highest recorded value was 20.54 kt in 2024.
What is the lowest forest fires — emissions recorded in Congo?
The lowest recorded value was 1.78 kt in 2002.
How does Congo rank for forest fires — emissions?
Congo ranks 18th out of 219 countries with data for 2024.
Is forest fires — emissions rising or falling in Congo?
Over the last ten years it is up 630.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
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 — Emissions (CH4). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Forest fires — Emissions in Congo. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 26 September 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/stat/forest-fires-emissions-ch4-fao-tier-1/congo-rep/

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About this data

Indicator
Forest fires — Emissions (CH4)
Unit
kt
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.