Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income): Terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2025, Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)'s terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area) rose 0.24 percentage points on 2024 (from 17.02% to 17.26%).

Across the 11 yearly changes before that (2014 to 2024), the average change was +0.06 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.37 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.5 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.65 percentage points in 2016 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.67 percentage points in 2014. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2016 to 2025 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.07 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 41% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

What this measures

Terrestrial protected areas are totally or partially protected areas of at least 1,000 hectares that are designated by national authorities as scientific reserves with limited public access, national parks, natural monuments, nature reserves or wildlife sanctuaries, protected landscapes, and areas managed mainly for sustainable use. Marine areas, unclassified areas, littoral (intertidal) areas, and sites protected under local or provincial law are excluded.

Limitations: The data source for this indicator is the World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA), the most comprehensive global dataset on marine and terrestrial protected areas available. The extent to which the land areas, including inland waters, and territorial waters of a country/territory are protected is useful for planning purpose to protect biodiversity. However, it is neither an indication of how well managed the terrestrial and marine protected areas are, nor confirmation that protection measures are effectively enforced. Further, the indicator does not provide information on non-designated or internationally designated protected areas that may also be important for conserving biodiversity.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 13 values

Terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area) in nearby economies

• Afghanistan — 3.6% (2025)
• Algeria — 4.7% (2025)
• Bahrain — 11.7% (2025)
• Djibouti — 1.6% (2025)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 13.1% (2025)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 7.8% (2025)
• Iraq — 1.5% (2025)
• Israel — 27.6% (2025)
• Jordan — 5.4% (2025)
• Kuwait

More environment data for Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)

• Population in the largest city (% of urban population) — 25.39% (2025)
• Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million (% of total population) — 16.33% (2025)
• Rural population — 731.36 million (2025)
• Rural population (% of total population) — 55.34% (2025)
• Urban population — 590.18 million (2025)
• Urban population (% of total population) — 44.66% (2025)
• Aquaculture production (metric tons) — 904,561 (2024)
• Capture fisheries production (metric tons)

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Questions people ask

What is Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)'s terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area)?

17.26% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2013?

It is up 0.91 percentage points from 16.35% in 2013. The highest value was 17.26% in 2025 and the lowest 15.68% in 2014.

Is the latest change in terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area) unusual for Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?

In 2025, Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)'s terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area) rose 0.24 percentage points on 2024 (from 17.02% to 17.26%). Across the 11 yearly changes before that (2014 to 2024), the average change was +0.06 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.37 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.5 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator ER.LND.PTLD.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), uri: https://www.protectedplanet.net/en, publisher: Protected Planet, date acces… Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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