Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Democratic Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo: Area burned by wildfires by land cover type was 1.46 million hectares in 2025. ▼ Falling
Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Democratic Republic of Congo, 2002–2025
Source: Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
Democratic Republic of Congo recorded 1.46 million hectares for area burned by wildfires by land cover type in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 19.0% on the previous year and down 0.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at 2.34 million hectares in 2004 and was at its lowest, 1.19 million hectares, in 2019.
That places Democratic Republic of Congo 22nd out of 225 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Democratic Republic of Congo, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 1.49 million hectares | — |
| 2003 | 1.92 million hectares | +28.5% |
| 2004 | 2.34 million hectares | +22.0% |
| 2005 | 2.19 million hectares | -6.3% |
| 2006 | 2.02 million hectares | -7.8% |
| 2007 | 1.88 million hectares | -7.2% |
| 2008 | 1.91 million hectares | +1.7% |
| 2009 | 1.79 million hectares | -6.1% |
| 2010 | 2.09 million hectares | +16.6% |
| 2011 | 1.49 million hectares | -28.8% |
| 2012 | 1.49 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 1.64 million hectares | +10.3% |
| 2014 | 1.35 million hectares | -17.9% |
| 2015 | 1.47 million hectares | +9.2% |
| 2016 | 1.42 million hectares | -3.6% |
| 2017 | 1.20 million hectares | -15.4% |
| 2018 | 1.38 million hectares | +14.8% |
| 2019 | 1.19 million hectares | -13.9% |
| 2020 | 1.28 million hectares | +7.8% |
| 2021 | 1.34 million hectares | +5.2% |
| 2022 | 1.40 million hectares | +4.5% |
| 2023 | 1.29 million hectares | -8.3% |
| 2024 | 1.81 million hectares | +40.3% |
| 2025 | 1.46 million hectares | -19.0% |
Democratic Republic of Congo compared with similar countries
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 1.46 million hectares is above the median for low income countries, which is 96,961 hectares, 15.1× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 1.46 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 541,498 hectares, 2.7× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 1.94 million hectares | 1.49 million hectares | 2.34 million hectares | 8 |
| 2010s | 1.47 million hectares | 1.19 million hectares | 2.09 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.43 million hectares | 1.28 million hectares | 1.81 million hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo
- 19 Ghana 1.75 million hectares compare
- 20 Venezuela 1.69 million hectares compare
- 21 Central African Republic 1.62 million hectares compare
- 23 Kazakhstan 1.39 million hectares compare
- 24 Russia 1.16 million hectares compare
- 25 United States 1.13 million hectares compare
More reference data data for Democratic Republic of Congo
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.3528 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.56 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.31 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.335 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 2.31 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.18 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.44 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 6.66 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 11.56 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.82 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Democratic Republic of Congo was 1.46 million hectares in 2025, according to Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest area burned by wildfires by land cover type recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The highest recorded value was 2.34 million hectares in 2004.
- What is the lowest area burned by wildfires by land cover type recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.19 million hectares in 2019.
- How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for area burned by wildfires by land cover type?
- Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 22nd out of 225 countries with data for 2025.
- Is area burned by wildfires by land cover type rising or falling in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Democratic Republic of Congo data come from?
- The figures come from Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Area burned by wildfires by land cover type. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Area of shrubland and grassland burnt by wildfires each year, in hectares. Includes open and closed shrublands and grasslands without a significant tree cover.