Terrestrial and marine protected areas in Low & middle income
Low & middle income: Terrestrial and marine protected areas was 12.3% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Terrestrial and marine protected areas in Low & middle income, 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 total territorial area.
Analysis
Low & middle income recorded 12.3% for terrestrial and marine protected areas in 2025. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.4% on the previous year and up 23.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, terrestrial and marine protected areas in Low & middle income peaked at 12.3% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 9.8%, in 2013.
Low & middle income ranks 27th of 47 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.
Terrestrial and marine protected areas in Low & middle income, year by year
| Year | % of total territorial area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 9.8% | — |
| 2014 | 10.2% | +4.0% |
| 2015 | 10.0% | -2.5% |
| 2016 | 10.6% | +5.9% |
| 2017 | 10.7% | +1.3% |
| 2018 | 11.4% | +6.0% |
| 2019 | 11.4% | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 11.6% | +1.8% |
| 2021 | 11.8% | +1.5% |
| 2022 | 11.9% | +0.9% |
| 2023 | 12.0% | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 12.3% | +2.5% |
| 2025 | 12.3% | +0.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 10.6% | 9.8% | 11.4% | 7 |
| 2020s | 12.0% | 11.6% | 12.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Low & middle income
- 24 Northern Mariana Islands 32.4% compare
- 25 Tanzania, United Republic of 32.3% compare
- 26 Cambodia 31.8% compare
- 27 Bolivia, Plurinational State of 30.9% compare
- 28 New Zealand 30.6% compare
- 29 Netherlands 29.8% compare
- 30 Austria 29.6% compare
- 30 Guinea 29.6% compare
More climate change data for Low & middle income
- Population growth 1.0% (2025)
- Population, total 6.79 billion (2025)
- Urban population growth 1.6% (2025)
- Urban population 3.61 billion (2025)
- Urban population 53.1% (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million 22.8% (2025)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 2,902 billion cubic meters (2022)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 10.4% (2022)
- Terrestrial protected areas 16.4% (2025)
- Marine protected areas 6.7% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is terrestrial and marine protected areas in Low & middle income?
- Terrestrial and marine protected areas in Low & middle income was 12.3% 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 terrestrial and marine protected areas recorded in Low & middle income?
- The highest recorded value was 12.3% in 2025.
- What is the lowest terrestrial and marine protected areas recorded in Low & middle income?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.8% in 2013.
- How does Low & middle income rank for terrestrial and marine protected areas?
- Low & middle income ranks 27th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is terrestrial and marine protected areas rising or falling in Low & middle income?
- Over the last ten years it is up 23.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Low & middle income 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 Terrestrial and marine protected areas (% of total territorial area). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Terrestrial protected areas are totally or partially protected areas of at least 1,000 hectares that are designated by national authorities as scientific reserves with limited public access, national parks, natural monuments, nature reserves or wildlife sanctuaries, protected landscapes, and areas managed mainly for sustainable use. 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. Sites protected under local or provincial law are excluded.