Annual area burnt by wildfires in Malawi

Malawi: Annual area burnt by wildfires was 67,365 hectares in 2026. ▼ Falling

Latest (2026)
67,365 hectares
Change on year
down 86.2%
World rank
72nd
of 248 countries
All-time high
1.20 million hectares
in 2012
All-time low
67,365 hectares
in 2026
Years of data
15
2012–2026

Annual area burnt by wildfires in Malawi, 2012–2026

0250.0k500.0k750.0k1.0M1.2M2012201920262012: 1.2M hectares2013: 1.1M hectares2014: 941.7k hectares2015: 976.7k hectares2016: 1.1M hectares2017: 803.4k hectares2018: 930.0k hectares2019: 880.0k hectares2020: 916.5k hectares2021: 809.5k hectares2022: 719.3k hectares2023: 663.2k hectares2024: 566.5k hectares2025: 489.6k hectares2026: 67.4k hectares

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

Analysis

Malawi recorded 67,365 hectares for annual area burnt by wildfires in 2026. That is the lowest value across all 15 years on record.

The figure is down 86.2% on the previous year and down 93.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, annual area burnt by wildfires in Malawi peaked at 1.20 million hectares in 2012 and was at its lowest, 67,365 hectares, in 2026.

That places Malawi 72nd out of 248 countries with data for 2026, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 986,295 hectares 803,434 hectares 1.20 million hectares 8
2020s 604,562 hectares 67,365 hectares 916,475 hectares 7

Countries ranked near Malawi

  1. 69 Pakistan 80,485 hectares compare
  2. 70 Italy 79,084 hectares compare
  3. 71 Iraq 74,612 hectares compare
  4. 73 Kenya 63,279 hectares compare
  5. 74 Mongolia 61,527 hectares compare
  6. 75 Peru 60,831 hectares compare

See the full ranking of 248 places →

More reference data data for Malawi

All data for Malawi →

Frequently asked questions

What is annual area burnt by wildfires in Malawi?
Annual area burnt by wildfires in Malawi was 67,365 hectares in 2026, according to Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest annual area burnt by wildfires recorded in Malawi?
The highest recorded value was 1.20 million hectares in 2012.
What is the lowest annual area burnt by wildfires recorded in Malawi?
The lowest recorded value was 67,365 hectares in 2026.
How does Malawi rank for annual area burnt by wildfires?
Malawi ranks 72nd out of 248 countries with data for 2026.
Is annual area burnt by wildfires rising or falling in Malawi?
Over the last ten years it is down 93.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Malawi 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. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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About this data

Indicator
Annual area burnt by wildfires
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
248 places, 3,720 data points, 2012–2026
Last refreshed

Area burnt by wildfires in hectares. The 2026 data is incomplete and was last updated 07 August 2026.