Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Namibia
Namibia: Area burned by wildfires by land cover type was 2.15 million hectares in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Namibia, 2002–2025
Source: Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2025, area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Namibia stood at 2.15 million hectares.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 105.0% on the previous year and down 12.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Namibia peaked at 8.73 million hectares in 2012 and was at its lowest, 908,736 hectares, in 2019.
That places Namibia 15th out of 225 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Namibia, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 3.11 million hectares | — |
| 2003 | 3.11 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 3.65 million hectares | +17.3% |
| 2005 | 3.46 million hectares | -5.4% |
| 2006 | 5.17 million hectares | +49.7% |
| 2007 | 4.53 million hectares | -12.5% |
| 2008 | 2.82 million hectares | -37.6% |
| 2009 | 5.35 million hectares | +89.7% |
| 2010 | 4.75 million hectares | -11.3% |
| 2011 | 8.30 million hectares | +74.9% |
| 2012 | 8.73 million hectares | +5.1% |
| 2013 | 3.68 million hectares | -57.8% |
| 2014 | 2.61 million hectares | -29.3% |
| 2015 | 2.46 million hectares | -5.7% |
| 2016 | 2.07 million hectares | -15.6% |
| 2017 | 2.70 million hectares | +30.1% |
| 2018 | 1.98 million hectares | -26.4% |
| 2019 | 908,736 hectares | -54.2% |
| 2020 | 3.25 million hectares | +257.5% |
| 2021 | 3.92 million hectares | +20.6% |
| 2022 | 2.45 million hectares | -37.4% |
| 2023 | 2.38 million hectares | -2.8% |
| 2024 | 1.05 million hectares | -56.1% |
| 2025 | 2.15 million hectares | +105.0% |
Namibia compared with similar countries
- Namibia's 2.15 million hectares is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 49,425 hectares, 43.4× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Namibia's 2.15 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 541,498 hectares, 4.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Namibia 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | +257.5% | 908,736 hectares | 3.25 million hectares |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3.90 million hectares | 2.82 million hectares | 5.35 million hectares | 8 |
| 2010s | 3.82 million hectares | 908,736 hectares | 8.73 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.53 million hectares | 1.05 million hectares | 3.92 million hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near Namibia
More reference data data for Namibia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0579 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.52 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0157 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.194 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.1306 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 6.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 6.82 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0853 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Namibia?
- Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in Namibia was 2.15 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 Namibia?
- The highest recorded value was 8.73 million hectares in 2012.
- What is the lowest area burned by wildfires by land cover type recorded in Namibia?
- The lowest recorded value was 908,736 hectares in 2019.
- How does Namibia rank for area burned by wildfires by land cover type?
- Namibia ranks 15th out of 225 countries with data for 2025.
- Is area burned by wildfires by land cover type rising or falling in Namibia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 12.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Namibia 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
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.