Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in South Sudan
South Sudan: Area burned by wildfires by land cover type was 8.48 million hectares in 2025. ▼ Falling
Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in South Sudan, 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 South Sudan stood at 8.48 million hectares.
That represents a change of down 9.9% on the previous year and down 33.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, area burned by wildfires by land cover type in South Sudan peaked at 14.69 million hectares in 2002 and was at its lowest, 6.24 million hectares, in 2019.
South Sudan ranks 3rd 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 by wildfires by land cover type in South Sudan, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 14.69 million hectares | — |
| 2003 | 10.74 million hectares | -26.9% |
| 2004 | 12.91 million hectares | +20.1% |
| 2005 | 13.29 million hectares | +3.0% |
| 2006 | 10.96 million hectares | -17.6% |
| 2007 | 12.43 million hectares | +13.4% |
| 2008 | 10.89 million hectares | -12.4% |
| 2009 | 12.81 million hectares | +17.6% |
| 2010 | 8.30 million hectares | -35.2% |
| 2011 | 11.57 million hectares | +39.5% |
| 2012 | 12.32 million hectares | +6.5% |
| 2013 | 11.62 million hectares | -5.7% |
| 2014 | 10.18 million hectares | -12.4% |
| 2015 | 12.67 million hectares | +24.5% |
| 2016 | 11.73 million hectares | -7.4% |
| 2017 | 8.25 million hectares | -29.7% |
| 2018 | 12.38 million hectares | +50.1% |
| 2019 | 6.24 million hectares | -49.6% |
| 2020 | 9.14 million hectares | +46.4% |
| 2021 | 10.71 million hectares | +17.2% |
| 2022 | 6.47 million hectares | -39.5% |
| 2023 | 8.97 million hectares | +38.6% |
| 2024 | 9.42 million hectares | +4.9% |
| 2025 | 8.48 million hectares | -9.9% |
South Sudan compared with similar countries
- South Sudan's 8.48 million hectares is above the median for low income countries, which is 96,961 hectares, 87.5× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- South Sudan's 8.48 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 541,498 hectares, 15.7× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 12.34 million hectares | 10.74 million hectares | 14.69 million hectares | 8 |
| 2010s | 10.53 million hectares | 6.24 million hectares | 12.67 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 8.86 million hectares | 6.47 million hectares | 10.71 million hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Sudan
More reference data data for South Sudan
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 7 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.3667 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 7.41 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Enteric 19,422 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Manure Management 684.53 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Manure applied to Soils 325.82 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Manure left on Pasture 8,797 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Burning - Crop 6.36 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Manure Management 577.67 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CH4) - IPCC Agriculture 944.75 (2019)
Frequently asked questions
- What is area burned by wildfires by land cover type in South Sudan?
- Area burned by wildfires by land cover type in South Sudan was 8.48 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 Sudan?
- The highest recorded value was 14.69 million hectares in 2002.
- What is the lowest area burned by wildfires by land cover type recorded in South Sudan?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.24 million hectares in 2019.
- How does South Sudan rank for area burned by wildfires by land cover type?
- South Sudan ranks 3rd out of 225 countries with data for 2025.
- Is area burned by wildfires by land cover type rising or falling in South Sudan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 33.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Sudan 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.