Terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area) in Democratic Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo: Terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area) was 14.9% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Terrestrial protected areas in Democratic Republic of Congo, 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 land area.
Analysis
Democratic Republic of Congo recorded 14.9% for terrestrial protected areas in 2025. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.
The figure is up 17.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, terrestrial protected areas in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at 14.9% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 12.7%, in 2014.
That places Democratic Republic of Congo 126th out of 213 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.
Terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area) in Democratic Republic of Congo, year by year
| Year | % of total land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 12.9% | — |
| 2014 | 12.7% | -1.6% |
| 2015 | 12.7% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 12.7% | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 13.8% | +8.7% |
| 2018 | 13.8% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 13.8% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 13.8% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 13.8% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 13.9% | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 13.9% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 14.9% | +7.2% |
| 2025 | 14.9% | +0.0% |
Democratic Republic of Congo compared with similar countries
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 14.9% is above the median for low income countries, which is 12.6%, 1.2× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 14.9% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 16.9%, 88% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 13.2% | 12.7% | 13.8% | 7 |
| 2020s | 14.2% | 13.8% | 14.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo
More climate change data for Democratic Republic of Congo
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 4.2% (2100)
- Population, total, annual growth rate 3.25 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population, total, per unit of GDP 0.0012 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Urban population, annual growth rate 4.1 % change on previous year (2025)
- Urban population, per unit of GDP 0.0006 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Urban population, per capita 0.4511 units per person (2025)
- Precipitation anomalies, annual growth rate 28.16 % change on previous year (2025)
- Urban population 50.90 million (2025)
- Urban population growth 4.0% (2025)
- Population, total 112.83 million (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is terrestrial protected areas in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Terrestrial protected areas in Democratic Republic of Congo was 14.9% 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 protected areas recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The highest recorded value was 14.9% in 2024.
- What is the lowest terrestrial protected areas recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.7% in 2014.
- How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for terrestrial protected areas?
- Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 126th out of 213 countries with data for 2025.
- Is terrestrial protected areas rising or falling in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Over the last ten years it is up 17.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Democratic Republic of Congo 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 protected areas (% of total land 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 areas, unclassified areas, littoral (intertidal) areas, and sites protected under local or provincial law are excluded.