Marine protected areas in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan: Marine protected areas was 4.3% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Marine protected areas in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, 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 Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan is 4.3%, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.9% on the previous year and up 287.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, marine protected areas in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan peaked at 4.3% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1.1%, in 2016.
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan ranks 29th of 47 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Marine protected areas in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, year by year
| Year | % of territorial waters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 1.1% | — |
| 2014 | 1.1% | +5.9% |
| 2015 | 1.1% | -1.9% |
| 2016 | 1.1% | -4.0% |
| 2017 | 1.1% | +7.4% |
| 2018 | 1.3% | +10.9% |
| 2019 | 1.3% | +1.5% |
| 2020 | 1.3% | +3.5% |
| 2021 | 1.4% | +2.6% |
| 2022 | 1.4% | +3.6% |
| 2023 | 1.4% | +1.7% |
| 2024 | 4.2% | +195.9% |
| 2025 | 4.3% | +0.9% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Marine protected areas in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | +195.9% | 1.4% | 4.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.3% | 7 |
| 2020s | 2.3% | 1.3% | 4.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan
More climate change data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan
- Urban population 463.33 million (2025)
- Population, total, annual growth rate 1.83 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population, total, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Urban population, annual growth rate 2.3 % change on previous year (2025)
- Urban population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Urban population, per capita 0.5596 units per person (2025)
- Urban population 56.0% (2025)
- Urban population growth 2.3% (2025)
- Population, total 828.02 million (2025)
- Population growth 1.8% (2025)
All data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan →
Frequently asked questions
- What is marine protected areas in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
- Marine protected areas in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan was 4.3% 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 Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
- The highest recorded value was 4.3% in 2025.
- What is the lowest marine protected areas recorded in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.1% in 2016.
- How does Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan rank for marine protected areas?
- Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan ranks 29th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is marine protected areas rising or falling in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 287.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan 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.