According to FAO's Global Forest Resources Assessment 2010 (FRA 2010), just over 4 billion hectares (4 033 million ha ) or 31 percent of total land area.

Deforestation, mainly the conversion of tropical forests to agricultural land, shows signs of decreasing in several countries but continues at a high rate in others. Around 13 million hectares of forests were converted to other uses or lost through natural causes each year in the last decade compared to 16 million hectares per year in the 1990s.

The Global Forest Resources Assessment 2010 (FRA 2010) is the most comprehensive assessment of forests and forestry to date: it examines the current status and recent trends for about 90 variables covering the extent, condition, uses and values of forests and other wooded land.

Please visit the FAOSTAT Forestry database, which provides annual production and trade estimates for numerous forest products, primarily wood products such as timber, wood panels, pulp and paper.

The FAO Forestry Country Profiles provide detailed information on forests and the forest sector: forest cover (types, extent and change), forest management, policies, products and trade, and more.

For further information please contact: FO-Library[@]fao.org