UG · Countries

Wildfires in Uganda

1,698 fires over 1,000 hectares with a perimeter estimated by GWIS since 2016, adding up to 3,080,150 hectares burned across 82 counties.

Only fires of 1,000 ha or more get an entry: smaller ones are not in the lists or the entry totals, but they are in the GWIS yearly series.

The season, week by week

Copernicus GWIS

Uganda, at this point in the year: 675,860 hectares, below the 2012–2025 average of 1,346,235.

2026 average 2012–2025 lowest and highest

2012–2026

Yearly average 2016–20251,701,854 ha

Worst year2016 3,091,341 ha

With a page here1,698 since 2016

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›See the year-by-year table

Year	Fires	hectares	Source
2026	3,065	676,319	GWIS
2025	4,879	1,152,165	GWIS
2024	4,160	988,840	GWIS
2023	6,066	1,361,146	GWIS
2022	5,200	1,185,091	GWIS
2021	8,583	2,034,308	GWIS
2020	8,043	2,005,760	GWIS
2019	5,703	1,329,451	GWIS
2018	6,278	1,399,916	GWIS
2017	9,717	2,470,517	GWIS
2016	12,706	3,091,341	GWIS
2015	10,859	2,596,769	GWIS
2014	8,471	1,952,526	GWIS
2013	11,215	2,761,225	GWIS
2012	9,084	2,281,646	GWIS

National estimates from Copernicus GWIS, rebuilt from heat detections since 2012.

Hectares with a perimeter estimated by GWIS by the fire’s starting month, and the largest fire of each year.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Σ	Largest of the year
2026	327k	14k		10k	7k	88k	34k	11k			491,524	Nwoya 16,324 ha
2025	38k	29k	3k						318k	69k	456,562	Bokora 15,293 ha
2024	22k	6k	1k	3k	4k		2k		2k	37k	77,553	Pian 2,672 ha
2023	29k	56k	1k		10k	3k			2k	12k	112,774	Busongora 5,493 ha
2022	64k	12k	3k	1k	9k			7k	5k		100,972	Busongora 4,525 ha
2021	110k	51k	7k		4k			3k	25k	67k	267,166	Nwoya 6,881 ha
2020	100k	28k	1k	10k	12k			4k	23k	121k	298,229	Bokora 12,360 ha
2019	158k	10k	6k			2k				13k	187,776	Buliisa 10,795 ha
2018	75k				3k		13k	13k		25k	129,665	Buliisa 7,394 ha
2017	284k	2k							2k	188k	475,496	Kibanda 41,220 ha
2016	135k	144k	3k		4k	3k	1k	6k	33k	155k	482,433	Kibanda 13,858 ha