How much land burns in Zambia in an average year?

According to Copernicus GWIS estimates, an average of 19,449,014 hectares burn in Zambia each year (2016–2025 average).

What was the worst wildfire year in Zambia?

The worst year in Zambia since 2016 was 2016, with 23,266,800 hectares burned according to Copernicus GWIS.

What is the largest wildfire recorded in Zambia?

Largest fire recorded by WorldFires in Zambia since 2016: Chipili fire, July 2026, with 614,688 hectares burned — perimeter rebuilt from heat detections (Copernicus GWIS).

When is wildfire season in Zambia?

In Zambia, 91% of the area burned in fires with a WorldFires page since 2016 burned in July–September; the month with the most burned area: August.

Which regions of Zambia burn the most?

Regions of Zambia with the most area burned in fires with a WorldFires page since 2016: Luapula (7,503,580 ha), Northern (5,230,244 ha), Muchinga (5,177,026 ha).

ZM · Countries

Wildfires in Zambia

2,810 fires over 3,000 hectares with a perimeter estimated by GWIS since 2016, adding up to 24,541,411 hectares burned across 94 districts.

Only fires of 3,000 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.

These figures leave out 5 provisional pages, seen only as heat detections and still without a perimeter. They appear in the lists, marked.

What is burning in Zambia today · 173 ›

Key facts

According to Copernicus GWIS, 14,382,541 hectares burned in Zambia in 2025.
The worst year in Zambia since 2016 was 2016, with 23,266,800 hectares burned according to Copernicus GWIS.
According to Copernicus GWIS estimates, an average of 19,449,014 hectares burn in Zambia each year (2016–2025 average).
Fires counted by Copernicus GWIS in Zambia so far in 2026 (up to week 42): 32,388, against an average of 49,969 per full year in 2016–2025.
Largest fire recorded by WorldFires in Zambia since 2016: Chipili fire, July 2026, with 614,688 hectares burned — perimeter rebuilt from heat detections (Copernicus GWIS).

Figures computed on 26 October 2026 from the WorldFires database; each sentence names its source. Reusable under CC BY 4.0 with credit to WorldFires.

How the season is going · week 42

Copernicus GWIS · provisional

53 % against the 2012–2025 average

Zambia is running below the usual for this point in the year, at 53 % of the average: 10,653,863 hectares burned up to week 42, against an average of 19,984,647 in 2012–2025 (Copernicus GWIS). No year between 2012 and 2025 had burned this little by now.

2026: 10,653,863 ha
average: 19,984,647 ha
minimum: 14,183,760 ha
maximum: 23,306,916 ha

GWIS estimates for the current year are provisional and may change.

The season, week by week

Copernicus GWIS

2026 average 2012–2025 lowest and highest

The GWIS yearly series

2012–2026

Yearly average 2016–202519,449,014 ha

Worst year2016 23,266,800 ha

With a page here2,810 since 2016

121314151617181920212223242526

›See the year-by-year table

Year	Fires	hectares	Source
2026	32,747	10,758,298	GWIS
2025	34,342	14,382,541	GWIS
2024	38,578	16,173,535	GWIS
2023	50,946	18,998,898	GWIS
2022	52,757	20,358,664	GWIS
2021	47,992	18,246,986	GWIS
2020	48,820	19,424,935	GWIS
2019	55,576	21,792,472	GWIS
2018	57,157	20,552,239	GWIS
2017	53,806	21,293,071	GWIS
2016	59,717	23,266,800	GWIS
2015	60,052	23,737,029	GWIS
2014	55,415	21,109,303	GWIS
2013	60,651	23,450,869	GWIS
2012	61,102	23,413,762	GWIS

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

Fire calendar

The peak usually comes in week 34 (around 23 August): that is the median of the week with the most burned area in each year since 2016.

Each cell is one week; the colour shows the area of the fires on record that started that week, in quartiles for this country. Tap a cell for details.

Hectares per week: no fires < 8,1198,119–40,29540,295–138 k≥ 138 k

When it burned: year by year, month by month

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

	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Σ	Largest of the year
2026			27k	199k	2,106k	2,673k	671k	527k			6,203,432	Chipili 614,688 ha
2025			3k	5k	52k	2,032k	864k	147k	3k		3,108,356	Mansa 296,161 ha
2024	5k	12k	16k	12k	295k	697k	271k	11k			1,319,368	Mansa 104,574 ha
2023		4k	24k	34k	43k	534k	410k	36k			1,084,206	Mansa 133,309 ha
2022			4k	4k	55k	567k	762k	298k			1,689,509	Mansa 185,598 ha
2021			4k	30k	47k	1,021k	514k	50k	23k	3k	1,692,764	Mansa 259,734 ha
2020				7k	75k	883k	935k	60k			1,959,486	Mansa 280,384 ha
2019	6k		11k	44k	143k	1,234k	472k	59k			1,970,422	Mansa 190,302 ha
2018				16k	69k	723k	535k	78k			1,420,586	Mansa 83,277 ha
2017				4k	59k	1,097k	678k	196k			2,033,317	Mansa 258,414 ha
2016		6k	7k	42k	178k	916k	680k	231k			2,059,965	Mansa 136,692 ha

Hectares burned per year

2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026

Tell me what burns here

New fires in this area by RSS: paste the link into your reader, no email needed.

Follow by RSS

Largest recorded fires

By region

Luapula 7,503,580 ha · 566
Northern 5,230,244 ha · 704
Muchinga 5,177,026 ha · 557
Central 2,759,495 ha · 434
North-Western 1,628,854 ha · 300
Western 797,544 ha · 183
Lusaka 523,861 ha · 80
Copperbelt 420,420 ha · 93
Eastern 336,737 ha · 65
Southern 307,999 ha · 71

Districts that have burned most often in Zambia

167×Kasama11 years · 836,647 ha
166×Shiwang'Andu11 years · 1,643,966 ha
165×Mpika11 years · 1,019,701 ha
163×Mansa11 years · 2,438,737 ha
154×Mumbwa11 years · 949,474 ha

Full ranking: by number of fires, area and share of the municipality →

Fires in 2026 · 618

See all 618 fires of 2026 →

Fires in 2025 · 272

See all 272 fires of 2025 →

Fires in 2024 · 160

See all 160 fires of 2024 →

Fires in 2023 · 165

See all 165 fires of 2023 →

Fires in 2022 · 235

See all 235 fires of 2022 →

Fires in 2021 · 213

See all 213 fires of 2021 →

Fires in 2020 · 229

See all 229 fires of 2020 →

Fires in 2019 · 243

See all 243 fires of 2019 →

Fires in 2018 · 204

See all 204 fires of 2018 →

Fires in 2017 · 230

See all 230 fires of 2017 →

Fires in 2016 · 246

See all 246 fires of 2016 →

Frequently asked questions

How much land burns in Zambia in an average year?: According to Copernicus GWIS estimates, an average of 19,449,014 hectares burn in Zambia each year (2016–2025 average).
What was the worst wildfire year in Zambia?: The worst year in Zambia since 2016 was 2016, with 23,266,800 hectares burned according to Copernicus GWIS.
What is the largest wildfire recorded in Zambia?: Largest fire recorded by WorldFires in Zambia since 2016: Chipili fire, July 2026, with 614,688 hectares burned — perimeter rebuilt from heat detections (Copernicus GWIS).
When is wildfire season in Zambia?: In Zambia, 91% of the area burned in fires with a WorldFires page since 2016 burned in July–September; the month with the most burned area: August.
How many wildfires has Zambia had in 2026?: Fires counted by Copernicus GWIS in Zambia so far in 2026 (up to week 42): 32,388, against an average of 49,969 per full year in 2016–2025. Zambia is running below the usual for this point in the year, at 53 % of the average: 10,653,863 hectares burned up to week 42, against an average of 19,984,647 in 2012–2025 (Copernicus GWIS). No year between 2012 and 2025 had burned this little by now.
Which regions of Zambia burn the most?: Regions of Zambia with the most area burned in fires with a WorldFires page since 2016: Luapula (7,503,580 ha), Northern (5,230,244 ha), Muchinga (5,177,026 ha).