Annual area burnt by wildfires in South Sudan
South Sudan: Annual area burnt by wildfires was 7.17 million hectares in 2026. ▼ Falling
Annual area burnt by wildfires in South Sudan, 2012–2026
Source: Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2026, annual area burnt by wildfires in South Sudan stood at 7.17 million hectares. That is the lowest value across all 15 years on record.
The figure is down 52.0% on the previous year and down 72.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual area burnt by wildfires in South Sudan peaked at 26.44 million hectares in 2015 and was at its lowest, 7.17 million hectares, in 2026.
South Sudan ranks 6th of 248 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.
Annual area burnt by wildfires in South Sudan, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 18.94 million hectares | — |
| 2013 | 22.00 million hectares | +16.1% |
| 2014 | 23.13 million hectares | +5.2% |
| 2015 | 26.44 million hectares | +14.3% |
| 2016 | 26.09 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 2017 | 22.29 million hectares | -14.6% |
| 2018 | 13.74 million hectares | -38.4% |
| 2019 | 15.81 million hectares | +15.0% |
| 2020 | 23.06 million hectares | +45.8% |
| 2021 | 23.17 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2022 | 17.02 million hectares | -26.5% |
| 2023 | 18.29 million hectares | +7.4% |
| 2024 | 18.94 million hectares | +3.6% |
| 2025 | 14.95 million hectares | -21.0% |
| 2026 | 7.17 million hectares | -52.0% |
South Sudan compared with similar countries
- South Sudan's 7.17 million hectares is above the median for low income countries, which is 198,497 hectares, 36.1× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- South Sudan's 7.17 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 506,694 hectares, 14.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 21.06 million hectares | 13.74 million hectares | 26.44 million hectares | 8 |
| 2020s | 17.52 million hectares | 7.17 million hectares | 23.17 million hectares | 7 |
Countries ranked near South Sudan
More reference data data for South Sudan
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 7 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.3667 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 7.41 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Enteric 19,422 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Manure Management 684.53 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Manure applied to Soils 325.82 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Manure left on Pasture 8,797 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Burning - Crop 6.36 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Manure Management 577.67 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CH4) - IPCC Agriculture 944.75 (2019)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual area burnt by wildfires in South Sudan?
- Annual area burnt by wildfires in South Sudan was 7.17 million 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 South Sudan?
- The highest recorded value was 26.44 million hectares in 2015.
- What is the lowest annual area burnt by wildfires recorded in South Sudan?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.17 million hectares in 2026.
- How does South Sudan rank for annual area burnt by wildfires?
- South Sudan ranks 6th out of 248 countries with data for 2026.
- Is annual area burnt by wildfires rising or falling in South Sudan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 72.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Sudan 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
Area burnt by wildfires in hectares. The 2026 data is incomplete and was last updated 18 September 2026.