Nitrous oxide emissions in Zambia
Zambia: Nitrous oxide emissions was 14.23 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2024)
14.23 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
Change on year
up 0.9%
World rank
41st
of 201 countries
All-time high
14.23 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
in 2024
All-time low
435,137 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
in 1850
Years of data
175
1850–2024
Nitrous oxide 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 nitrous oxide emissions in Zambia is 14.23 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 175 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.9% on the previous year and up 12.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, nitrous oxide emissions in Zambia peaked at 14.23 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024 and was at its lowest, 435,137 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents, in 1850.
That places Zambia 41st out of 201 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
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 | 468,739 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 435,137 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 494,257 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1860s | 500,304 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 496,251 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 504,114 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1870s | 624,332 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 505,365 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 769,622 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1880s | 815,273 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 785,352 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 840,171 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1890s | 924,155 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 881,775 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 970,752 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1900s | 1.04 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 982,242 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.10 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1910s | 1.37 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.12 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.69 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1920s | 2.09 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.75 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 2.37 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1930s | 2.32 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 2.27 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 2.38 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1940s | 5.63 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 2.29 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 9.52 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1950s | 8.32 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 6.62 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 9.76 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1960s | 7.16 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 6.56 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 7.72 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1970s | 7.95 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 6.07 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 11.23 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1980s | 7.89 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 6.50 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 9.42 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1990s | 10.51 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 9.80 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10.85 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2000s | 11.13 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 9.61 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 12.34 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2010s | 12.62 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 11.62 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 13.09 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.54 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 12.72 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 14.23 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 5 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
- 38 Belarus 15.35 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 39 Italy 15.22 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 40 Mongolia 14.81 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 42 Niger 14.07 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 43 Mali 13.77 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 44 South Korea 13.69 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 nitrous oxide emissions in Zambia?
- Nitrous oxide emissions in Zambia was 14.23 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 nitrous oxide emissions recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 14.23 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024.
- What is the lowest nitrous oxide emissions recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 435,137 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 1850.
- How does Zambia rank for nitrous oxide emissions?
- Zambia ranks 41st out of 201 countries with data for 2024.
- Is nitrous oxide emissions rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.2%. 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 Nitrous oxide 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.