Share of land area that is protected in United Arab Emirates

United Arab Emirates: Share of land area that is protected was 19.2% in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
19.2%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
92nd
of 213 countries
All-time high
19.4%
in 2020
All-time low
13.1%
in 2016
Years of data
13
2013–2025

Share of land area that is protected in United Arab Emirates, 2013–2025

051015202013201920252013: 18.6 % of total land area2014: 18.6 % of total land area2015: 18.6 % of total land area2016: 13.1 % of total land area2017: 17.3 % of total land area2018: 18 % of total land area2019: 18 % of total land area2020: 19.4 % of total land area2021: 19.4 % of total land area2022: 19.4 % of total land area2023: 19.4 % of total land area2024: 19.2 % of total land area2025: 19.2 % 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

The most recent figure for share of land area that is protected in United Arab Emirates is 19.2%, measured in 2025.

The figure is up 3.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of land area that is protected in United Arab Emirates peaked at 19.4% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 13.1%, in 2016.

United Arab Emirates ranks 92nd of 213 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 17.5% 13.1% 18.6% 7
2020s 19.3% 19.2% 19.4% 6

Countries ranked near United Arab Emirates

  1. 89 Guatemala 20.1% compare
  2. 90 Jamaica 19.9% compare
  3. 91 Mongolia 19.8% compare
  4. 93 Pakistan 19.1% compare
  5. 94 Equatorial Guinea 19.0% compare
  6. 95 Laos 18.8% compare
  7. 95 Latvia 18.8% compare

See the full ranking of 213 places →

More reference data data for United Arab Emirates

All data for United Arab Emirates →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of land area that is protected in United Arab Emirates?
Share of land area that is protected in United Arab Emirates was 19.2% 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 United Arab Emirates?
The highest recorded value was 19.4% in 2020.
What is the lowest share of land area that is protected recorded in United Arab Emirates?
The lowest recorded value was 13.1% in 2016.
How does United Arab Emirates rank for share of land area that is protected?
United Arab Emirates ranks 92nd out of 213 countries with data for 2025.
Is share of land area that is protected rising or falling in United Arab Emirates?
Over the last ten years it is up 3.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this United Arab Emirates 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.