Share of marine territorial waters that are protected in South Africa
South Africa: Share of marine territorial waters that are protected was 15.4% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Share of marine territorial waters that are protected in South Africa, 2013–2025
Source: Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of territorial waters.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of marine territorial waters that are protected in South Africa is 15.4%, measured in 2025.
The figure is up 27.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of marine territorial waters that are protected in South Africa peaked at 15.5% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 12.1%, in 2013.
South Africa ranks 39th of 174 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.
Share of marine territorial waters that are protected in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % of territorial waters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 12.1% | — |
| 2014 | 12.1% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 12.1% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 12.1% | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 12.1% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 12.1% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 14.6% | +20.7% |
| 2020 | 15.5% | +6.2% |
| 2021 | 15.5% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 15.5% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 15.5% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 15.4% | -0.6% |
| 2025 | 15.4% | +0.0% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 15.4% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.9%, 16.2× the median. (50 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 15.4% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.7%, 22.0× the median. (32 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 12.5% | 12.1% | 14.6% | 7 |
| 2020s | 15.5% | 15.4% | 15.5% | 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 share of marine territorial waters that are protected in South Africa?
- Share of marine territorial waters that are protected in South Africa was 15.4% in 2025, according to Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of marine territorial waters that are protected recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 15.5% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of marine territorial waters that are protected recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.1% in 2013.
- How does South Africa rank for share of marine territorial waters that are protected?
- South Africa ranks 39th out of 174 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of marine territorial waters that are protected rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 27.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of marine territorial waters that are protected. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Marine protected areas are regions of intertidal or sub-tidal land and associated water, flora and fauna, and cultural and historical features that have been legally or effectively reserved for protection.