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Per capita greenhouse gas emissions in Zambia

Zambia: Per capita greenhouse gas emissions was 4.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 2024. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2024)
4.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person
Change on year
down 2.6%
World rank
109th
of 199 countries
All-time high
21.81 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person
in 1959
All-time low
4.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person
in 2024
Years of data
175
1850–2024

Per capita greenhouse gas emissions in Zambia, 1850–2024

5101520185019372024

Source: Jones et al. (2025); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person.

Analysis

The most recent figure for per capita greenhouse gas emissions in Zambia is 4.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 175 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.6% on the previous year and down 25.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, per capita greenhouse gas emissions in Zambia peaked at 21.81 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 1959 and was at its lowest, 4.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person, in 2024.

Zambia ranks 109th 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

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1850s 6.84 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 6.4 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 7.7 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1860s 6.18 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 6.07 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 6.35 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1870s 6.19 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 6.08 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 6.32 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1880s 7.01 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 6.54 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 7.27 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1890s 6.56 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 6.32 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 7.03 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1900s 5.75 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 5.35 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 6.21 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1910s 5.75 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 5.45 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 6.27 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1920s 12.88 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 9.02 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 14.58 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1930s 15.16 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 14.77 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 15.47 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1940s 19.55 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 16.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 21.55 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1950s 21.39 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 20.92 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 21.81 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1960s 15.73 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 13.4 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 21.67 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1970s 10.54 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 6.46 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 16.13 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1980s 7.16 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 6.74 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 7.57 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1990s 7.11 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 6.16 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 7.79 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
2000s 7.46 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 5.81 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 9.35 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
2010s 6.58 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 5.29 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 8.37 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
2020s 4.83 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 4.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 5.04 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 5

Countries ranked near Zambia

  1. 106 Niue 4.71 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
  2. 107 Colombia 4.69 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
  3. 110 Switzerland 4.5 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
  4. 111 North Macedonia 4.43 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
  5. 112 Peru 4.41 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare

See the full ranking of 199 places →

More climate change data for Zambia

All data for Zambia →

Frequently asked questions

What is per capita greenhouse gas emissions in Zambia?
Per capita greenhouse gas emissions in Zambia was 4.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 2024, according to Jones et al. (2025); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest per capita greenhouse gas emissions recorded in Zambia?
The highest recorded value was 21.81 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 1959.
What is the lowest per capita greenhouse gas emissions recorded in Zambia?
The lowest recorded value was 4.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 2024.
How does Zambia rank for per capita greenhouse gas emissions?
Zambia ranks 109th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
Is per capita greenhouse gas emissions rising or falling in Zambia?
Over the last ten years it is down 25.6%. 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); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Per capita greenhouse gas 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

Indicator
Per capita greenhouse gas emissions
Unit
tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person
Source
Jones et al. (2025); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
199 places, 34,079 data points, 1850–2024
Last refreshed

Greenhouse gas emissions are measured in tonnes per person of carbon dioxide-equivalents over a 100-year timescale.