Nigeria's forest cover fell from 28.4 % in 1994 to 23.2 % in 2023.
Nigeria · Environment
Forests, air quality, land, water and protected areas.
10 indicators · 10 with data
Land
Nigeria's forest area fell from 258,729 km in 1994 to 211,371 km in 2023.
Terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area)
% of land area
133rd of 213 · 31st in Sub-Saharan Africa
Nigeria's terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area) was 13.9 % in 2013 and 13.9 % in 2025.
Nigeria's agricultural land (% of land area) rose from 68.0 % in 1994 to 76.2 % in 2023.
Nigeria's arable land (% of land area) rose from 34.0 % in 1994 to 40.5 % in 2023.
Air
Nigeria's air pollution (pm2.5) rose from 64.8 in 1994 to 65.7 in 2023.
Water
Nigeria's water stress rose from 3.5 % in 1993 to 5.6 % in 2022.
Renewable internal freshwater resources per capita
cubic metres per person
128th of 181 · 28th in Sub-Saharan Africa
Nigeria's renewable internal freshwater resources per capita fell from 2,102 in 1993 to 990.4 in 2022.
Access
Nigeria's safe drinking water rose from 12.6 % in 2000 to 29.9 % in 2024.
Nigeria's safe sanitation rose from 20.5 % in 2000 to 32.2 % in 2024.