Marine protected areas in Africa Western and Central
Africa Western and Central: Marine protected areas was 2.9% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Marine protected areas in Africa Western and Central, 2013–2025
Source: Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring. Measured in % of territorial waters.
Analysis
In 2025, marine protected areas in Africa Western and Central stood at 2.9%. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 7.1% on the previous year and up 237.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, marine protected areas in Africa Western and Central peaked at 2.9% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.8%, in 2013.
That places Africa Western and Central 36th out of 47 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.
Marine protected areas in Africa Western and Central, year by year
| Year | % of territorial waters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 0.8% | — |
| 2014 | 0.8% | +1.5% |
| 2015 | 0.9% | +6.7% |
| 2016 | 0.9% | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 2.7% | +212.1% |
| 2018 | 2.7% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 2.7% | +1.5% |
| 2020 | 2.7% | -1.4% |
| 2021 | 2.8% | +3.8% |
| 2022 | 2.8% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 2.8% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 2.7% | -2.6% |
| 2025 | 2.9% | +7.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 1.6% | 0.8% | 2.7% | 7 |
| 2020s | 2.8% | 2.7% | 2.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Africa Western and Central
More climate change data for Africa Western and Central
- Population growth 2.3% (2025)
- Population, total 532.81 million (2025)
- Urban population growth 3.4% (2025)
- Urban population 284.93 million (2025)
- Urban population 53.5% (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million 18.1% (2025)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 32.38 billion cubic meters (2022)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 1.7% (2022)
- Terrestrial protected areas 16.3% (2025)
- Terrestrial and marine protected areas 13.0% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is marine protected areas in Africa Western and Central?
- Marine protected areas in Africa Western and Central was 2.9% in 2025, according to Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring.
- What is the highest marine protected areas recorded in Africa Western and Central?
- The highest recorded value was 2.9% in 2025.
- What is the lowest marine protected areas recorded in Africa Western and Central?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.8% in 2013.
- How does Africa Western and Central rank for marine protected areas?
- Africa Western and Central ranks 36th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is marine protected areas rising or falling in Africa Western and Central?
- Over the last ten years it is up 237.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Africa Western and Central data come from?
- The figures come from Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring, published as part of Marine protected areas (% of territorial waters). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Marine protected areas are areas of intertidal or subtidal terrain--and overlying water and associated flora and fauna and historical and cultural features--that have been reserved by law or other effective means to protect part or all of the enclosed environment.