Methane emissions in Zambia
Zambia: Methane emissions was 21.14 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2024)
21.14 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
Change on year
up 2.6%
World rank
74th
of 199 countries
All-time high
21.14 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
in 2024
All-time low
525,427 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
in 1850
Years of data
175
1850–2024
Methane emissions in Zambia, 1850–2024
Source: Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes of CO₂ equivalents.
Analysis
The most recent figure for methane emissions in Zambia is 21.14 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 175 years on record.
The figure is up 2.6% on the previous year and up 16.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, methane emissions in Zambia peaked at 21.14 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024 and was at its lowest, 525,427 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents, in 1850.
Zambia ranks 74th of 199 countries 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.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1850s | 527,410 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 525,427 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 529,395 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1860s | 536,352 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 529,836 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 544,153 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1870s | 555,029 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 546,036 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 564,349 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1880s | 576,984 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 566,528 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 587,873 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1890s | 602,796 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 590,435 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 615,730 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1900s | 643,360 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 618,792 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 670,930 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1910s | 760,826 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 678,063 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 847,942 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1920s | 980,532 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 868,758 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.10 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1930s | 1.42 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.13 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 2.03 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1940s | 3.24 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 2.23 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 4.31 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1950s | 6.15 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 4.57 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 7.95 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1960s | 8.31 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 8.06 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 8.68 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1970s | 9.29 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 7.13 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 12.92 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1980s | 9.79 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 8.31 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 11.75 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1990s | 13.69 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 12.94 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 14.35 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2000s | 15.34 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 13.40 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 16.55 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2010s | 17.76 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 16.08 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 18.63 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2020s | 19.80 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 18.21 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 21.14 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 5 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
- 71 Romania 21.65 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 72 Guinea 21.53 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 73 Cameroon 21.40 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 75 Ghana 19.53 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 76 Netherlands 19.05 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 77 North Korea 18.97 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
More climate change data for Zambia
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 0.6% (2100)
- Population growth 2.8% (2025)
- Population, total 21.91 million (2025)
- Urban population growth 3.7% (2025)
- Urban population 10.06 million (2025)
- Urban population 45.9% (2025)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. GDP per capita 0.565 tonnes per person (2024)
- Cumulative CO₂ emissions 300.84 million tonnes (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita 0.565 tonnes per person (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. share of electricity generation from renewables 0.565 tonnes per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is methane emissions in Zambia?
- Methane emissions in Zambia was 21.14 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024, according to Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest methane emissions recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 21.14 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024.
- What is the lowest methane emissions recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 525,427 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 1850.
- How does Zambia rank for methane emissions?
- Zambia ranks 74th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is methane emissions rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Zambia data come from?
- The figures come from Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Methane emissions. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 175 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Measured in tonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalents over a 100-year timescale.