Grassland — Burned Area in Southern Africa

Southern Africa: Grassland — Burned Area was 6.15 million ha in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
6.15 million ha
Change on year
down 44.7%
Rank
13th
of 31 groups
All-time high
16.65 million ha
in 2011
All-time low
1.81 million ha
in 1999
Years of data
35
1990–2024

Grassland — Burned Area in Southern Africa, 1990–2024

05.0M10.0M15.0M1990200720241990: 7.7M ha1991: 7.7M ha1992: 7.7M ha1993: 7.7M ha1994: 7.7M ha1995: 7.7M ha1996: 2.0M ha1997: 1.9M ha1998: 1.9M ha1999: 1.8M ha2000: 2.1M ha2001: 10.7M ha2002: 11.3M ha2003: 6.6M ha2004: 7.4M ha2005: 9.4M ha2006: 10.6M ha2007: 8.5M ha2008: 12.2M ha2009: 8.7M ha2010: 15.1M ha2011: 16.6M ha2012: 10.7M ha2013: 8.5M ha2014: 8.0M ha2015: 5.5M ha2016: 4.2M ha2017: 7.7M ha2018: 5.9M ha2019: 4.2M ha2020: 6.0M ha2021: 11.6M ha2022: 7.9M ha2023: 11.1M ha2024: 6.2M ha

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

Analysis

In 2024, grassland — burned area in Southern Africa stood at 6.15 million ha.

That represents a change of down 44.7% on the previous year and down 23.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, grassland — burned area in Southern Africa peaked at 16.65 million ha in 2011 and was at its lowest, 1.81 million ha, in 1999.

That places Southern Africa 13th out of 31 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.

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

Grassland — Burned Area in Southern Africa, year by year

Annual values for Grassland — Burned Area in Southern Africa, 1990 to 2024.
Year ha Change
1990 7.74 million ha
1991 7.74 million ha +0.0%
1992 7.74 million ha +0.0%
1993 7.74 million ha +0.0%
1994 7.74 million ha +0.0%
1995 7.74 million ha +0.0%
1996 2.01 million ha -74.1%
1997 1.88 million ha -6.1%
1998 1.89 million ha +0.1%
1999 1.81 million ha -4.0%
2000 2.15 million ha +18.6%
2001 10.73 million ha +399.2%
2002 11.34 million ha +5.7%
2003 6.61 million ha -41.7%
2004 7.38 million ha +11.6%
2005 9.45 million ha +28.0%
2006 10.60 million ha +12.2%
2007 8.49 million ha -19.9%
2008 12.20 million ha +43.7%
2009 8.70 million ha -28.7%
2010 15.15 million ha +74.1%
2011 16.65 million ha +9.9%
2012 10.69 million ha -35.8%
2013 8.49 million ha -20.6%
2014 8.05 million ha -5.2%
2015 5.50 million ha -31.6%
2016 4.17 million ha -24.3%
2017 7.67 million ha +84.1%
2018 5.94 million ha -22.6%
2019 4.21 million ha -29.2%
2020 5.96 million ha +41.7%
2021 11.56 million ha +93.9%
2022 7.88 million ha -31.9%
2023 11.12 million ha +41.1%
2024 6.15 million ha -44.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 5.40 million ha 1.81 million ha 7.74 million ha 10
2000s 8.77 million ha 2.15 million ha 12.20 million ha 10
2010s 8.65 million ha 4.17 million ha 16.65 million ha 10
2020s 8.53 million ha 5.96 million ha 11.56 million ha 5

Countries ranked near Southern Africa

  1. 10 Chad 4.49 million ha compare
  2. 11 South Africa 3.83 million ha compare
  3. 11 Türkiye 41,374 ha compare
  4. 12 Zambia 3.59 million ha compare
  5. 13 Madagascar 3.28 million ha compare
  6. 14 Burkina Faso 3.26 million ha compare
  7. 15 Senegal 3.12 million ha compare
  8. 16 Ghana 2.97 million ha compare

See the full ranking of 273 places →

More climate change data for Southern Africa

All data for Southern Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is grassland — burned area in Southern Africa?
Grassland — burned area in Southern Africa was 6.15 million ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest grassland — burned area recorded in Southern Africa?
The highest recorded value was 16.65 million ha in 2011.
What is the lowest grassland — burned area recorded in Southern Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 1.81 million ha in 1999.
How does Southern Africa rank for grassland — burned area?
Southern Africa ranks 13th out of 31 groups with data for 2024.
Is grassland — burned area rising or falling in Southern Africa?
Over the last ten years it is down 23.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Southern Africa data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Grassland — Burned Area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Grassland — Burned Area in Southern Africa. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 29 August 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/stat/grassland-burned-area-fao-tier-1/southern-africa/

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About this data

Indicator
Grassland — Burned Area
Unit
ha
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
273 places, 9,329 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.