Share of land area that is protected in Zambia
Zambia: Share of land area that is protected was 41.3% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Share of land area that is protected in Zambia, 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 total land area.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of land area that is protected in Zambia is 41.3%, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 8.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of land area that is protected in Zambia peaked at 41.3% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 37.9%, in 2017.
Zambia ranks 11th of 213 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.
Share of land area that is protected in Zambia, year by year
| Year | % of total land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 38.0% | — |
| 2014 | 38.0% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 38.0% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 38.0% | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 37.9% | -0.3% |
| 2018 | 37.9% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 41.3% | +9.0% |
| 2020 | 41.3% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 41.3% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 41.3% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 41.3% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 41.3% | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 41.3% | +0.0% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 41.3% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 18.8%, 2.2× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 41.3% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 16.9%, 2.4× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 38.4% | 37.9% | 41.3% | 7 |
| 2020s | 41.3% | 41.3% | 41.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
More reference data data for Zambia
- Exchange rate, new LCU per USD extended backward, period average 18.94 (2026)
- Exchange rate, old LCU per USD extended forward, period average 18.94 (2026)
- Official exchange rate, LCU per USD, period average 18.94 (2026)
- Global number of reported disasters by size, gaps filled 0 events (2025)
- Annual precipitation, annual growth rate 40.84 % change on previous year (2025)
- Free country, gaps filled 1 (2025)
- Civil liberties rating, gaps filled 4 (2025)
- Civil liberties rating, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Civil liberties rating, per capita 0 units per person (2025)
- Consumer price index 483.32 2010 = 100 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of land area that is protected in Zambia?
- Share of land area that is protected in Zambia was 41.3% 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 Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 41.3% in 2019.
- What is the lowest share of land area that is protected recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 37.9% in 2017.
- How does Zambia rank for share of land area that is protected?
- Zambia ranks 11th out of 213 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of land area that is protected rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Zambia 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
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.