Area burned wildfires by type in Nigeria
Nigeria: Area burned wildfires by type was 2.89 million in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
2.89 million
Change on year
down 3.6%
World rank
12th
of 225 countries
All-time high
4.93 million
in 2005
All-time low
2.50 million
in 2018
Years of data
24
2002–2025
Area burned wildfires by type in Nigeria, 2002–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for area burned wildfires by type in Nigeria is 2.89 million, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of down 3.6% on the previous year and up 14.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, area burned wildfires by type in Nigeria peaked at 4.93 million in 2005 and was at its lowest, 2.50 million, in 2018.
Nigeria ranks 12th of 225 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Area burned wildfires by type in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 3.55 million | — |
| 2003 | 4.12 million | +15.9% |
| 2004 | 4.78 million | +16.1% |
| 2005 | 4.93 million | +3.3% |
| 2006 | 4.69 million | -5.0% |
| 2007 | 4.61 million | -1.5% |
| 2008 | 3.49 million | -24.4% |
| 2009 | 3.18 million | -8.7% |
| 2010 | 3.57 million | +12.3% |
| 2011 | 2.97 million | -16.8% |
| 2012 | 2.98 million | +0.2% |
| 2013 | 2.62 million | -12.2% |
| 2014 | 2.52 million | -3.6% |
| 2015 | 2.52 million | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 3.47 million | +37.4% |
| 2017 | 2.87 million | -17.2% |
| 2018 | 2.50 million | -12.8% |
| 2019 | 2.55 million | +2.0% |
| 2020 | 2.92 million | +14.2% |
| 2021 | 3.50 million | +20.0% |
| 2022 | 3.25 million | -7.1% |
| 2023 | 3.26 million | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 3.00 million | -8.0% |
| 2025 | 2.89 million | -3.6% |
Nigeria compared with similar countries
- Nigeria's 2.89 million is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 49,425, 58.5× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Nigeria's 2.89 million is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 541,498, 5.3× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 4.17 million | 3.18 million | 4.93 million | 8 |
| 2010s | 2.86 million | 2.50 million | 3.57 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.14 million | 2.89 million | 3.50 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More reference data data for Nigeria
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.77 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 19.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 5.94 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 5.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 81.9 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 121.16 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 14.27 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is area burned wildfires by type in Nigeria?
- Area burned wildfires by type in Nigeria was 2.89 million in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest area burned wildfires by type recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 4.93 million in 2005.
- What is the lowest area burned wildfires by type recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.50 million in 2018.
- How does Nigeria rank for area burned wildfires by type?
- Nigeria ranks 12th out of 225 countries with data for 2025.
- Is area burned wildfires by type rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 14.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Nigeria data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Area burned wildfires by 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).