Global Forest Resources Assessment 2025
This report is an essential resource for understanding long-term trends in forest resources and how they relate to global goals and targets, including those on biodiversity, climate and sustainable land use. With its transparent methodology and broad scope, the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2025 is the only worldwide assessment based on official national data. It is, therefore, the most authoritative global source of data for policymakers, foresters, researchers and anyone wanting to know the past, present and future of the world’s forests.
Watching over our forests: A shared commitment
INTERACTIVE
Video
Insight into the Global Forest Resources Assessment process
03/03/2021
The Global Forest Resources Assessments or FRA, by its acronym, is the most comprehensive assessment of the world’s forests. It is also the only global...
Technical documentation
FRA 2025 data were collected using commonly agreed terms and definitions and guidelines through a transparent, traceable reporting process and a well-established network of officially nominated national correspondents that covers 194 countries and areas.
Highlights
Naming an overlooked threat to forests: How FAO is working to define ‘forest degradation’ in the context of the Global Forest Resources Assessment
16/09/2026
FAO is leading an international effort through the Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA) to develop a conceptual definition of forest degradation.
FAO supports Amazon countries in building a shared approach to monitoring components of forest degradation
28/08/2026
FAO participated in the Regional Meeting on Forest Degradation in the Amazon,
Latin America strengthens forest monitoring to improve climate action and conservation
10/07/2026
A new FAO reporting process will enable countries to update key forest data more frequently, strengthening the information needed to guide climate,...
FAO inspires the next generation of forest leaders through innovative learning initiatives
12/06/2026
FAO is stepping up efforts to engage younger generations in the forest sector, unveiling a range of educational tools and initiatives designed to inspire...
Branching out
02/02/2026
Synergies in forest assessments can streamline reporting processes by enhancing data quality, reducing national reporting burden and strengthening evidence-based...
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
FRA is the mechanism for collecting data and reporting on two forest-related indicators of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Specifically, data submitted to FRA contribute to reporting on SDG goal 15 – Life on Land - indicators 15.1.1 (forest area as a proportion of total land area) and 15.2.1 (progress towards sustainable forest management). In addition, the FRA team manages the custodianship of SDG Indicator 15.4.2 a) Mountain Green Cover Index and b) Proportion of Degraded Mountain Land.
Publications
The world’s mangroves 2000–2020
2023
This report provides global and regional estimates of the area covered by mangrove forests, including area changes between 2000 and 2020. It analyses...
How much do large-scale and small-scale farming contribute to global deforestation?
2023
This study expands on the work conducted during the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020 Remote Sensing Survey and revisits the extensive dataset...
An assessment of uptake of the Global Core Set of Forest-related Indicators
2022
The twenty-fifth session of the Committee on Forestry requested FAO to analyse - in collaboration with members of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests...
FRA 2020 Remote Sensing Survey
2022
The FRA 2020 Remote Sensing survey is a global collaborative study of the land use dynamic between the years 2000, 2010 and 2018. More than 800 local...
Status of, and trends in, the Global Core Set of Forest-related Indicators
2022
The strong commitment of the international community to provide the information necessary for monitoring progress towards global goals, targets and...
A guide to forest–water management
2021
The purpose of "A guide to forest–water management" is to improve the global information base on the protective functions of forests for soil and water....
Trees, forests and land use in drylands: the first global assessment
2019
Drylands cover 41 percent of the Earth's land surface. This publication presents the results of the first global assessment of trees, forests and land...
Seventy years of FAO's Global Forest Resources Assessment (1948-2018)
2018
The Global Forest Resources Assessment of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) celebrated its 70th Anniversary in 2018....
Keeping an eye on SDG 15
2017
This publication presents three Sustainable Development Goal indicators for which FAO is the custodian agency: 15.1.1 (Forest area as a proportion of...
Forest Kids
Forest Kids is available for free in six languages: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Spanish and Russian. Downloading Forest Kids is easy! Visit the App Store, Google Play or our website at www.fao.org/forest-resources-assessment/ForestKids/
Partners
This website has been produced with the assistance of the European Union, the Government of Finland, the Government of Norway, the Global Environment Facility and the Swiss Confederation. Its contents are the sole responsibility of FAO and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union, the Government of Finland, the Government of Norway, the Global Environment Facility and the Swiss Confederation.