Share of land area that is protected in Iraq

Iraq: Share of land area that is protected was 1.5% in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
1.5%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
203rd
of 213 countries
All-time high
1.5%
in 2016
All-time low
0.3%
in 2013
Years of data
13
2013–2025

Share of land area that is protected in Iraq, 2013–2025

0.250.50.7511.21.52013201920252013: 0.3 % of total land area2014: 0.9 % of total land area2015: 0.9 % of total land area2016: 1.5 % of total land area2017: 1.5 % of total land area2018: 1.5 % of total land area2019: 1.5 % of total land area2020: 1.5 % of total land area2021: 1.5 % of total land area2022: 1.5 % of total land area2023: 1.5 % of total land area2024: 1.5 % of total land area2025: 1.5 % of total land area

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 total land area.

Analysis

Iraq recorded 1.5% for share of land area that is protected in 2025. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.

The figure is up 66.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of land area that is protected in Iraq peaked at 1.5% in 2016 and was at its lowest, 0.3%, in 2013.

Iraq ranks 203rd of 213 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 1.2% 0.3% 1.5% 7
2020s 1.5% 1.5% 1.5% 6

Countries ranked near Iraq

  1. 200 Bermuda 2.3% compare
  2. 201 Morocco 2.1% compare
  3. 202 Djibouti 1.6% compare
  4. 204 Barbados 1.1% compare
  5. 204 Yemen 1.1% compare
  6. 206 Syria 0.7% compare

See the full ranking of 213 places →

More reference data data for Iraq

All data for Iraq →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of land area that is protected in Iraq?
Share of land area that is protected in Iraq was 1.5% 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 land area that is protected recorded in Iraq?
The highest recorded value was 1.5% in 2016.
What is the lowest share of land area that is protected recorded in Iraq?
The lowest recorded value was 0.3% in 2013.
How does Iraq rank for share of land area that is protected?
Iraq ranks 203rd out of 213 countries with data for 2025.
Is share of land area that is protected rising or falling in Iraq?
Over the last ten years it is up 66.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Iraq 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 land area that is protected. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Share of land area that is protected
Unit
% of total land area
Source
Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
213 places, 2,746 data points, 2013–2025
Last refreshed

Terrestrial protected areas are areas of at least 1,000 hectares that are designated by national authorities in order to preserve their ecosystem services and cultural values.