Wildfire area burned by land cover type in Uganda
Uganda: Wildfire area burned by land cover type was 1,760 hectares in 2025. ▼ Falling
Wildfire area burned by land cover type in Uganda, 2002–2025
Source: Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2025, wildfire area burned by land cover type in Uganda stood at 1,760 hectares.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 21.2% on the previous year and down 57.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, wildfire area burned by land cover type in Uganda peaked at 6,955 hectares in 2017 and was at its lowest, 794.24 hectares, in 2020.
Uganda ranks 31st of 225 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Wildfire area burned by land cover type in Uganda, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 2,190 hectares | — |
| 2003 | 4,229 hectares | +93.1% |
| 2004 | 4,272 hectares | +1.0% |
| 2005 | 6,440 hectares | +50.8% |
| 2006 | 4,443 hectares | -31.0% |
| 2007 | 2,705 hectares | -39.1% |
| 2008 | 2,512 hectares | -7.1% |
| 2009 | 3,177 hectares | +26.5% |
| 2010 | 3,821 hectares | +20.3% |
| 2011 | 5,860 hectares | +53.4% |
| 2012 | 815.71 hectares | -86.1% |
| 2013 | 4,250 hectares | +421.1% |
| 2014 | 5,839 hectares | +37.4% |
| 2015 | 4,143 hectares | -29.0% |
| 2016 | 4,486 hectares | +8.3% |
| 2017 | 6,955 hectares | +55.0% |
| 2018 | 2,490 hectares | -64.2% |
| 2019 | 3,134 hectares | +25.9% |
| 2020 | 794.24 hectares | -74.7% |
| 2021 | 1,825 hectares | +129.7% |
| 2022 | 1,825 hectares | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 4,443 hectares | +143.5% |
| 2024 | 2,232 hectares | -49.8% |
| 2025 | 1,760 hectares | -21.2% |
Uganda compared with similar countries
- Uganda's 1,760 hectares is above the median for low income countries, which is 558.11 hectares, 3.2× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Uganda's 1,760 hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 246.86 hectares, 7.1× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Wildfire area burned by land cover type in Uganda changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | +421.1% | 815.71 hectares | 4,250 hectares |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3,746 hectares | 2,190 hectares | 6,440 hectares | 8 |
| 2010s | 4,179 hectares | 815.71 hectares | 6,955 hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 2,147 hectares | 794.24 hectares | 4,443 hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near Uganda
More reference data data for Uganda
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.36 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 5.95 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 7.86 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.4214 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 7.86 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 4.57 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 5.13 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 29.65 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 42.22 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.29 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is wildfire area burned by land cover type in Uganda?
- Wildfire area burned by land cover type in Uganda was 1,760 hectares in 2025, according to Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest wildfire area burned by land cover type recorded in Uganda?
- The highest recorded value was 6,955 hectares in 2017.
- What is the lowest wildfire area burned by land cover type recorded in Uganda?
- The lowest recorded value was 794.24 hectares in 2020.
- How does Uganda rank for wildfire area burned by land cover type?
- Uganda ranks 31st out of 225 countries with data for 2025.
- Is wildfire area burned by land cover type rising or falling in Uganda?
- Over the last ten years it is down 57.5%. 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 Wildfire area burned by land cover type. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Area of other land types burnt by wildfires each year, in hectares. Includes wetlands, urban areas, snow and ice, bare ground, and water bodies.