Share of global cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring in Iraq
Iraq: Share of global cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring was 4.7% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of global cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring in Iraq, 1965–2024
Source: Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, share of global cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring in Iraq stood at 4.7%. That is the highest value across all 60 years on record.
The figure is up 1.6% on the previous year and up 23.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of global cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring in Iraq peaked at 4.7% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 0.6%, in 1965.
Iraq ranks 7th of 215 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 60 years of available data.
Share of global cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring in Iraq, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1965 | 0.6% | — |
| 1966 | 1.3% | +93.8% |
| 1967 | 1.7% | +33.2% |
| 1968 | 1.9% | +15.7% |
| 1969 | 2.2% | +12.9% |
| 1970 | 2.3% | +7.6% |
| 1971 | 2.6% | +9.0% |
| 1972 | 2.7% | +4.4% |
| 1973 | 2.8% | +3.8% |
| 1974 | 2.9% | +4.2% |
| 1975 | 3.1% | +5.7% |
| 1976 | 3.3% | +6.5% |
| 1977 | 3.3% | +2.8% |
| 1978 | 3.4% | +2.6% |
| 1979 | 3.6% | +5.5% |
| 1980 | 3.7% | +3.1% |
| 1981 | 3.7% | -1.0% |
| 1982 | 3.7% | -0.8% |
| 1983 | 3.6% | -0.5% |
| 1984 | 3.7% | +0.4% |
| 1985 | 3.7% | +1.4% |
| 1986 | 3.8% | +2.2% |
| 1987 | 3.8% | +1.2% |
| 1988 | 3.9% | +0.6% |
| 1989 | 3.9% | +1.2% |
| 1990 | 3.9% | -0.6% |
| 1991 | 3.8% | -3.2% |
| 1992 | 3.7% | -2.7% |
| 1993 | 3.6% | -2.6% |
| 1994 | 3.5% | -1.7% |
| 1995 | 3.4% | -1.7% |
| 1996 | 3.4% | -1.9% |
| 1997 | 3.4% | -0.8% |
| 1998 | 3.3% | -0.3% |
| 1999 | 3.4% | +0.3% |
| 2000 | 3.4% | +0.5% |
| 2001 | 3.4% | +0.6% |
| 2002 | 3.4% | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 3.4% | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 3.4% | +0.7% |
| 2005 | 3.4% | +0.4% |
| 2006 | 3.5% | +0.4% |
| 2007 | 3.5% | +0.2% |
| 2008 | 3.5% | +0.4% |
| 2009 | 3.5% | +0.8% |
| 2010 | 3.5% | +1.1% |
| 2011 | 3.6% | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 3.7% | +1.9% |
| 2013 | 3.7% | +1.9% |
| 2014 | 3.8% | +2.0% |
| 2015 | 3.9% | +2.6% |
| 2016 | 4.0% | +2.8% |
| 2017 | 4.1% | +2.6% |
| 2018 | 4.2% | +2.3% |
| 2019 | 4.3% | +2.0% |
| 2020 | 4.4% | +1.9% |
| 2021 | 4.5% | +1.9% |
| 2022 | 4.6% | +1.8% |
| 2023 | 4.6% | +1.6% |
| 2024 | 4.7% | +1.6% |
Iraq compared with similar countries
- Iraq's 4.7% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.0%, 868.5× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Iraq's 4.7% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 0.2%, 20.5× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of global cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring in Iraq 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1966 | +93.8% | 0.6% | 1.3% |
| 1967 | +33.2% | 1.3% | 1.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.5% | 0.6% | 2.2% | 5 |
| 1970s | 3.0% | 2.3% | 3.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 3.8% | 3.6% | 3.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.5% | 3.3% | 3.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.4% | 3.4% | 3.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.9% | 3.5% | 4.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.5% | 4.4% | 4.7% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Iraq
More climate change data for Iraq
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 672.48 million kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 10,634 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 3,750 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 6,884 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 14.15 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 245.84 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 5,859 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 4,294 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 1,565 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 16.21 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of global cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring in Iraq?
- Share of global cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring in Iraq was 4.7% in 2024, according to Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of global cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring recorded in Iraq?
- The highest recorded value was 4.7% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of global cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring recorded in Iraq?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.6% in 1965.
- How does Iraq rank for share of global cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring?
- Iraq ranks 7th out of 215 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of global cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring rising or falling in Iraq?
- Over the last ten years it is up 23.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iraq data come from?
- The figures come from Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of global cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 60 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Cumulative emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from flaring since the first year of available data, measured as a percentage of global cumulative emissions of CO₂ from flaring.