Satellite data published in Nature shows Africa’s forests and woody savannas transitioned from net carbon sinks to net carbon sources between 2010 and 2017, with an average annual biomass loss of about 106 million tonnes from 2011–2017. The worst impacts were recorded in the DRC, Madagascar and parts of West Africa. Researchers link the decline to logging, agricultural expansion and rising commodity demand, and warn this shift makes meeting Paris Agreement targets significantly harder without faster emissions cuts and stronger forest governance.
Africa’s Forests Have Become Net Carbon Sources — A Wake-Up Call for Climate Action
Dragon blood trees grow in Firmihin Forest, the largest concentration of the trees, on October 14, 2025 in Socotra, Yemen [Carl Court/Getty Images]
New satellite-based research published in Nature shows that human pressures have pushed large parts of Africa’s forests and woody savannas from being net carbon sinks to net carbon sources between 2010 and 2017. The change undermines a crucial natural service that has helped offset emissions for decades.
What the Study Found
Researchers at the National Centre for Earth Observation and teams from the Universities of Leicester, Sheffield and Edinburgh used satellite data to measure carbon uptake in trees and woody vegetation across Africa. They report a critical transition between 2010 and 2017: landscapes that historically removed more CO2 from the atmosphere than they emitted are now emitting more carbon than they absorb.
Between 2011 and 2017 the study estimates an average annual loss of about 106 million tonnes of biomass across African forests and woody savannas, substantially reducing the continent’s capacity to sequester carbon. The most severely affected areas include tropical broadleaf forests in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Madagascar and parts of West Africa.
“The implications of this shift are profound. Africa’s forests and woodlands have historically served as a carbon sink. Now, they are contributing to widening the global greenhouse gas emissions gap that needs to be filled to stay within the goals of the Paris Agreement.”
Why This Matters
Africa’s forests have been responsible for roughly one-fifth of global terrestrial carbon removal. Losing that service makes it much harder to meet the Paris Agreement targets — limiting warming well below 2°C and pursuing efforts to keep warming to 1.5°C. Oceans remain the largest single carbon sink, absorbing about one-quarter of emissions, but terrestrial sinks like forests are essential buffers against accelerating climate change.
Drivers Behind the Decline
The report links biomass losses and reduced carbon uptake to several human-driven pressures: intensified logging, conversion of forest to agricultural land, infrastructure expansion, and fuelwood extraction. It warns these pressures could intensify with population growth and rising international demand for commodities, particularly from Asia.
Local governance and the sustainable management of natural resources will determine whether these trends persist or can be reversed. The authors emphasise that political, economic and societal actions — from improved forest governance to capacity building and incentives for conservation — are needed to halt and reverse biomass loss.
Responses and Solutions
Initiatives such as the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF) aim to mobilise finance for forest protection — targeting $100 billion to compensate countries that preserve their forests. To date the facility has raised around $6.5 billion from a small group of donors. The scale of funding needed highlights the gap between ambition and current commitments.
Experts also stress the inescapable need to reduce fossil-fuel emissions. As Heiko Balzter, a study co-author and professor of physical geography at the University of Leicester, told New Scientist: if tropical forests can no longer be relied on to offset emissions, society must accelerate cuts in greenhouse-gas emissions from fossil fuels to reach near-zero levels.
Bottom Line
Protecting and restoring forest carbon sinks in Africa is urgent: doing so preserves biodiversity, supports livelihoods and preserves a key climate buffer. But conserving forests alone is not enough — rapid, deep reductions in fossil-fuel emissions and stronger global investment in forest protection are both essential to meet international climate goals.
