Marine protected areas in High income
High income: Marine protected areas was 26.8% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Marine protected areas in High income, 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
The most recent figure for marine protected areas in High income is 26.8%, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.
The figure is up 31.5% on the previous year and up 83.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, marine protected areas in High income peaked at 26.8% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 10.5%, in 2013.
High income ranks 2nd of 45 groups on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.
Marine protected areas in High income, year by year
| Year | % of territorial waters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 10.5% | — |
| 2014 | 13.2% | +26.2% |
| 2015 | 14.6% | +10.6% |
| 2016 | 18.0% | +23.4% |
| 2017 | 18.4% | +2.2% |
| 2018 | 19.6% | +6.5% |
| 2019 | 20.8% | +6.2% |
| 2020 | 21.3% | +2.2% |
| 2021 | 19.8% | -6.9% |
| 2022 | 20.1% | +1.3% |
| 2023 | 20.1% | -0.1% |
| 2024 | 20.4% | +1.5% |
| 2025 | 26.8% | +31.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 16.4% | 10.5% | 20.8% | 7 |
| 2020s | 21.4% | 19.8% | 26.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near High income
- 1 Monaco 100.0% compare
- 2 Palau 98.0% compare
- 3 Saint Martin (French part) 97.0% compare
- 4 New Caledonia 96.5% compare
- 5 French Polynesia 87.4% compare
More climate change data for High income
- Population growth 0.4% (2025)
- Population, total 1.42 billion (2025)
- Urban population growth 0.6% (2025)
- Urban population 1.14 billion (2025)
- Urban population 80.2% (2025)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 950.91 billion cubic meters (2022)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 6.4% (2022)
- Terrestrial protected areas 16.7% (2025)
- Terrestrial and marine protected areas 22.2% (2025)
- CPIA public sector management and institutions cluster average 3.2 1=low to 6=high (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is marine protected areas in High income?
- Marine protected areas in High income was 26.8% 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 High income?
- The highest recorded value was 26.8% in 2025.
- What is the lowest marine protected areas recorded in High income?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.5% in 2013.
- How does High income rank for marine protected areas?
- High income ranks 2nd out of 45 groups with data for 2025.
- Is marine protected areas rising or falling in High income?
- Over the last ten years it is up 83.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this High income 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.