Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in South Africa
South Africa: Area burned by wildfires by land cover type was 2.13 million hectares in 2025. ▼ Falling
Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in South Africa, 2002–2025
Source: Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
The most recent figure for area burned by wildfires by land cover type in South Africa is 2.13 million hectares, measured in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 47.8% on the previous year and down 12.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, area burned by wildfires by land cover type in South Africa peaked at 5.24 million hectares in 2023 and was at its lowest, 1.36 million hectares, in 2016.
That places South Africa 16th 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 South Africa, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 4.75 million hectares | — |
| 2003 | 3.25 million hectares | -31.6% |
| 2004 | 2.80 million hectares | -13.7% |
| 2005 | 4.58 million hectares | +63.5% |
| 2006 | 3.33 million hectares | -27.4% |
| 2007 | 3.60 million hectares | +8.2% |
| 2008 | 3.63 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 2009 | 3.60 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 2010 | 4.13 million hectares | +14.8% |
| 2011 | 3.96 million hectares | -4.2% |
| 2012 | 3.58 million hectares | -9.5% |
| 2013 | 3.40 million hectares | -5.0% |
| 2014 | 3.40 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2015 | 2.43 million hectares | -28.6% |
| 2016 | 1.36 million hectares | -43.8% |
| 2017 | 2.70 million hectares | +98.0% |
| 2018 | 2.74 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 2019 | 2.47 million hectares | -10.0% |
| 2020 | 2.63 million hectares | +6.6% |
| 2021 | 4.65 million hectares | +76.6% |
| 2022 | 3.07 million hectares | -34.0% |
| 2023 | 5.24 million hectares | +71.0% |
| 2024 | 4.08 million hectares | -22.1% |
| 2025 | 2.13 million hectares | -47.8% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 2.13 million hectares is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 10,669 hectares, 199.8× the median. (56 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 2.13 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 541,498 hectares, 3.9× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3.69 million hectares | 2.80 million hectares | 4.75 million hectares | 8 |
| 2010s | 3.02 million hectares | 1.36 million hectares | 4.13 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.63 million hectares | 2.13 million hectares | 5.24 million hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More reference data data for South Africa
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5111 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 8.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 13.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.7468 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 13.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.49 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 41.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 63.65 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 4.07 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is area burned by wildfires by land cover type in South Africa?
- Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in South Africa was 2.13 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 South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 5.24 million hectares in 2023.
- What is the lowest area burned by wildfires by land cover type recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.36 million hectares in 2016.
- How does South Africa rank for area burned by wildfires by land cover type?
- South Africa ranks 16th out of 225 countries with data for 2025.
- Is area burned by wildfires by land cover type rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 12.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa 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.