Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in Uganda

Uganda: Annual area burnt by wildfires by region was 1.67 million hectares in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
1.67 million hectares
Change on year
down 13.1%
World rank
36th
of 225 countries
All-time high
5.58 million hectares
in 2005
All-time low
1.02 million hectares
in 2019
Years of data
23
2002–2024

Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in Uganda, 2002–2024

1.0M2.0M3.0M4.0M5.0M6.0M2002201320242002: 2.7M hectares2003: 4.4M hectares2004: 3.2M hectares2005: 5.6M hectares2006: 1.0M hectares2007: 4.5M hectares2008: 3.4M hectares2009: 1.9M hectares2010: 3.3M hectares2011: 1.8M hectares2012: 3.5M hectares2013: 2.7M hectares2014: 2.1M hectares2015: 2.4M hectares2016: 3.5M hectares2017: 2.5M hectares2018: 2.2M hectares2019: 1.0M hectares2020: 2.6M hectares2021: 2.5M hectares2022: 2.0M hectares2023: 1.9M hectares2024: 1.7M hectares

Source: Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.

Analysis

The most recent figure for annual area burnt by wildfires by region in Uganda is 1.67 million hectares, measured in 2024.

The figure is down 13.1% on the previous year and down 22.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, annual area burnt by wildfires by region in Uganda peaked at 5.58 million hectares in 2005 and was at its lowest, 1.02 million hectares, in 2019.

Uganda ranks 36th of 225 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 23 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 3.34 million hectares 1.03 million hectares 5.58 million hectares 8
2010s 2.50 million hectares 1.02 million hectares 3.52 million hectares 10
2020s 2.14 million hectares 1.67 million hectares 2.58 million hectares 5

Countries ranked near Uganda

  1. 33 Paraguay 1.94 million hectares compare
  2. 34 Argentina 1.88 million hectares compare
  3. 35 Mexico 1.86 million hectares compare
  4. 37 Colombia 1.55 million hectares compare
  5. 38 Cote d'Ivoire 1.42 million hectares compare
  6. 39 Zimbabwe 1.34 million hectares compare

See the full ranking of 225 places →

More reference data data for Uganda

All data for Uganda →

Frequently asked questions

What is annual area burnt by wildfires by region in Uganda?
Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in Uganda was 1.67 million hectares in 2024, according to Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest annual area burnt by wildfires by region recorded in Uganda?
The highest recorded value was 5.58 million hectares in 2005.
What is the lowest annual area burnt by wildfires by region recorded in Uganda?
The lowest recorded value was 1.02 million hectares in 2019.
How does Uganda rank for annual area burnt by wildfires by region?
Uganda ranks 36th out of 225 countries with data for 2024.
Is annual area burnt by wildfires by region rising or falling in Uganda?
Over the last ten years it is down 22.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Uganda data come from?
The figures come from Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual area burnt by wildfires by region. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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About this data

Indicator
Annual area burnt by wildfires by region
Unit
hectares
Source
Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
225 places, 5,175 data points, 2002–2024
Last refreshed

Total land area burnt by wildfires each year, in hectares, across all land cover types.