February 2023
This dataset on protected areas provides country-level protected area coverage for terrestrial, marine and coastal areas using the World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA). It provides a disaggregation of protected area total by IUCN management categories to answer two key questions:
UNEP-WCMC and IUCN (2023), Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) January 2023, Cambridge, UK: UNEP-WCMC and IUCN. Available at: http://www.protectedplanet.net/.
FAO (2015), The Global Administrative Unit Layers (GAUL), implemented by FAO within the CountrySTAT and Agricultural Market Information System (AMIS) projects. Available at fao.org/geonetwork/srv/en/main.home.
Flanders Marine Institute (2019), Maritime Boundaries Geodatabase, version 11. Available at marineregions.org/doi.org/10.14284/242.
IUCN management categories aim to describe and categorise the different management approaches in individual protected areas. IUCN management category definitions are described in more detail here.
Some countries have some protected areas recorded as points with a reported area. This point data is more uncertain than protected areas reported as polygons because overlaps cannot be identified or resolved. For this reason the total for countries is provided with and without the inclusion of the total reported area of protected areas recorded as points. The reported area of protected areas recorded as points can (individually or cumulatively) exceed the reference area used to calculate these indicators so coverages of greater than 100% can be reported.
Protected area indicators were updated in January / February 2023 to include data up to the year 2022.
Protected areas are not necessarily sited optimally with respect to biodiversity conservation objectives.
A more complete description of the method to develop the protected area indicators can be found here.
February 2023
This dataset on protected areas provides country-level protected area coverage for terrestrial, marine and coastal areas using the World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA). It provides a disaggregation of protected area total by IUCN management categories to answer two key questions:
UNEP-WCMC and IUCN (2023), Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) January 2023, Cambridge, UK: UNEP-WCMC and IUCN. Available at: http://www.protectedplanet.net/.
FAO (2015), The Global Administrative Unit Layers (GAUL), implemented by FAO within the CountrySTAT and Agricultural Market Information System (AMIS) projects. Available at fao.org/geonetwork/srv/en/main.home.
Flanders Marine Institute (2019), Maritime Boundaries Geodatabase, version 11. Available at marineregions.org/doi.org/10.14284/242.
IUCN management categories aim to describe and categorise the different management approaches in individual protected areas. IUCN management category definitions are described in more detail here.
Some countries have some protected areas recorded as points with a reported area. This point data is more uncertain than protected areas reported as polygons because overlaps cannot be identified or resolved. For this reason the total for countries is provided with and without the inclusion of the total reported area of protected areas recorded as points. The reported area of protected areas recorded as points can (individually or cumulatively) exceed the reference area used to calculate these indicators so coverages of greater than 100% can be reported.
Protected area indicators were updated in January / February 2023 to include data up to the year 2022.
Protected areas are not necessarily sited optimally with respect to biodiversity conservation objectives.
A more complete description of the method to develop the protected area indicators can be found here.