Photo: Hans Hillewaert derivative work: Jjtkk · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale
Topic 07 of 18 · Country Index 2026
Namibia: Environment & Sustainability
How much pressure does a country put on the natural world?
Namibia is placed 14th of 181 countries on environment & sustainability in the Country Index 2026, from 2 of its 3 key statistics. Readings behind it: CO₂ Emissions per Capita 1.145 (2024); Water Stress 0.31 (2023).
Environment & Sustainability
14th
of 181 countries placed
Placed from 2 of 3 key statistics
01The evidence
The 3 key statistics that decide it
Only these place Namibia on environment & sustainability — one vote each. Every value is the publisher’s own, read at the edition the Country Index 2026 used; the grey ticks are every other country it was compared with, lowest on the left.
Key 1 of 3
CO₂ Emissions per Capita
Global Carbon Project
Why it is a key: How much carbon dioxide a country's own fuel burning puts into the air for each person living there.
2024 edition · data for 2024 · CC BY 4.0
1.145
Fossil CO₂ (tonnes per person)
Lower is better
Namibia: 1.145. Across the 210 countries in this edition, values run from 0.054 (DR Congo) to 41.27 (Qatar); the world median is 3.21.
- World median
- 3.21
- Best in Southern Africa
- 0.841 Eswatini
- Land neighbours
- Angola 0.589 · Botswana 2.96 · South Africa 6.872 · Zambia 0.565
Each grey tick is one of 210 countries in the 2024 edition.
Key 2 of 3
Water Stress
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Why it is a key: Whether a country withdraws more freshwater than nature replaces: the one pressure in this subject a country creates for itself rather than faces.
2023 edition · data for 2023 · CC BY 4.0
0.31
Freshwater withdrawal as a share of available resources (%)
Lower is better
Namibia: 0.31. Across the 177 countries in this edition, values run from 0.03 (Republic of the Congo) to 3,851 (Kuwait); the world median is 10.
- World median
- 10
- Best in Southern Africa
- 0.31 Namibia
- Land neighbours
- Angola 1.87 · Botswana 2.32 · South Africa 67.6 · Zambia 8.62
Each grey tick is one of 177 countries in the 2023 edition.
Key 3 of 3
Ecological Footprint
Global Footprint Network
Why it is a key: How much of the planet's biological capacity a country's own consumption uses up.
2025 edition · data for 2025 · CC BY-SA 4.0
No reading
Ecological Footprint (global hectares per person)
Lower is better
Global Footprint Network publishes no 2025 figure for Namibia, so the standing rests on the other keys.
Across the 126 countries in this edition, values run from 0.514 (Yemen) to 11.73 (Qatar); the world median is 2.296.
- World median
- 2.296
- Best in Southern Africa
- 1.822 Eswatini
- Land neighbours
- Angola 0.707 · Botswana 2.152 · South Africa 2.56 · Zambia 1.109
Each grey tick is one of 126 countries in the 2025 edition.
02Over time
Which way Namibia is moving
Each key’s published value, edition by edition, beside the world median. The Country Index 2026 is the first edition of the standing, so the standing itself has no history to chart yet.
CO₂ Emissions per Capita
Fossil CO₂ (tonnes per person) · lower is better
NamibiaWorld median
Namibia rose from 0.945 in 2000 to 1.145 in 2024; the world median went from 2.662 to 3.21.
Every year’s figures
Year Namibia World median 2024 1.1449 3.210 2023 1.1618 3.145 2022 1.1814 3.162 2021 1.2837 3.087 2020 1.2608 2.903 2019 1.4073 3.273 2018 1.4104 3.036 2017 1.4319 3.049 2016 1.4686 2.894 2015 1.4293 2.846 2014 1.3404 2.919 2013 1.3335 2.779 2012 1.4554 2.770 2011 1.2978 2.748 2010 1.3216 2.812 2009 1.2805 2.799 2008 1.3961 2.979 2007 1.1526 2.593 2006 1.2674 2.865 2005 1.2874 2.885 2004 1.1527 2.802 2003 1.0911 2.918 2002 1.0430 2.785 2001 1.2016 2.726 2000 0.9449 2.662 Water Stress
Freshwater withdrawal as a share of available resources (%) · lower is better
NamibiaWorld median
Namibia fell from 0.92 in 2000 to 0.31 in 2023; the world median went from 10.07 to 10.
Every year’s figures
Year Namibia World median 2023 0.31 10.000 2022 0.31 10.190 2021 0.31 10.460 2020 0.36 10.460 2019 0.39 10.890 2018 0.42 10.460 2017 0.45 10.460 2016 0.47 10.460 2015 0.50 10.190 2014 0.53 10.460 2013 0.56 10.460 2012 0.59 10.460 2011 0.61 10.460 2010 0.64 10.710 2009 0.67 10.960 2008 0.70 10.815 2007 0.72 11.180 2006 0.75 10.430 2005 0.78 10.250 2004 0.81 10.715 2003 0.83 10.370 2002 0.86 10.180 2001 0.89 10.130 2000 0.92 10.070
03In context
Namibia beside its neighbours
A position reads best beside the countries around it. Every position below is a place among all 181 countries on environment & sustainability, never a place within the region.
Namibia and the countries it borders
The standing is each country’s place among all 181 placed on the topic; the other columns are the publishers’ own values, read at the edition the standing used.
| Country | Standing | CO₂ Emissions per CapitaFossil CO₂ (tonnes per person) | Water StressFreshwater withdrawal as a share of available resources (%) | Ecological FootprintEcological Footprint (global hectares per person) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Angola | 7th | 0.589 | 1.87 | 0.707 |
| Namibia | 14th | 1.145 | 0.31 | — |
 Zambia | 48th | 0.565 | 8.62 | 1.109 |
 Botswana | 63rd | 2.96 | 2.32 | 2.152 |
 South Africa | 158th | 6.872 | 67.6 | 2.56 |
“—” means the publisher gives no reading for that country in that edition. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed.
Across Southern Africa
Every country in the sub-region, by its place among all 181.
Placed either side on environment & sustainability
The countries immediately above and below Namibia in the topic’s list.
04Context, no vote
Where Namibia is ahead of the world, and behind
24 more statistics filed under environment & sustainability, published in full and deliberately given no vote in the standing. Select a row for the publisher, the rank and the links.
Ahead of the world median6
Statistics on which Namibia does better than the middle country measured.
Renewable Share of Electricity GenerationEmber · 2024 · world median 31.1497.5631.14No real change since 2014
Namibia: 97.56 · world median 31.14 · Renewables (% of electricity generated). Ember, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 100; higher is better.
Position 11th of 190 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Carbon Intensity of ElectricityEmber · 2024 · world median 468.8152.44468.81No real change since 2014
Namibia: 52.44 · world median 468.81 · Carbon intensity (gCO₂e per kWh generated). Ember, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 23.49 to 1,306; lower is better.
Position 181st of 193 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Low-Carbon Share of Electricity GenerationEmber · 2024 · world median 35.6697.5635.66No real change since 2014
Namibia: 97.56 · world median 35.66 · Low-carbon sources (% of electricity generated). Ember, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 100; higher is better.
Position 13th of 190 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Wind and Solar Share of Electricity GenerationEmber · 2024 · world median 5.76936.595.769▲ Improved since 2014
Namibia: 36.59 · world median 5.769 · Wind and solar (% of electricity generated). Ember, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 69.12; higher is better.
Internal Displacements by DisasterIDMC · 2024 · world median 4,7501,4004,750▼ Worsened since 2014
Namibia: 1,400 · world median 4,750 · New displacements by disaster (people). Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 1 to 11,001,000; lower is better.
Position 107th of 160 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Energy Intensity of GDP (PPP)EIA · 2024 · world median 2.7382.4642.738No real change since 2014
Namibia: 2.464 · world median 2.738 · Energy use per dollar of GDP (thousand Btu per US$ at PPP). U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0.666 to 17.45; lower is better.
Behind the world median8
Statistics on which Namibia does worse than the middle country measured.
Renewable Internal Freshwater Resources per CapitaFAO · 2022 · world median 2,5282,1322,528▼ Worsened since 2012
Namibia: 2,132 · world median 2,528 · Renewable internal freshwater (cubic metres per person). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2022 edition, data for 2022.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 445,023; higher is better.
Position 104th of 181 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
World Risk IndexInstitute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict (IFHV), Ruhr University Bochum · 2025 · world median 4.175.864.17No real change since 2015
Namibia: 5.86 · world median 4.17 · WorldRiskIndex score (0–100, where 100 is the most at risk). Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict (IFHV), Ruhr University Bochum, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0.18 to 46.56; lower is better.
Position 80th of 193 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Planetary pressures-adjusted HDIUNDP Human Development Report Office · 2023 · world median 0.6780.6110.678▲ Improved since 2013
Namibia: 0.611 · world median 0.678 · PHDI (0–1). UNDP Human Development Report Office, 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0.276 to 0.827; higher is better.
Position 103rd of 156 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
ND-GAIN Country IndexNotre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN), University of Notre Dame · 2024 · world median 47.4441.8747.44▼ Worsened since 2014
Namibia: 41.87 · world median 47.44 · ND-GAIN Index (0–100, where 100 is best placed to adapt). Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN), University of Notre Dame, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 26.42 to 71.85; higher is better.
Ranked 133rd of 190 by Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN), University of Notre Dame.
World Energy Trilemma IndexWorld Energy Council · 2023 · world median 63.855.863.8No earlier reading
Namibia: 55.8 · world median 63.8 · Trilemma score (0–100). World Energy Council, 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 27.7 to 83.2; higher is better.
Ranked 73rd of 99 by World Energy Council.
Climate Vulnerability (ND-GAIN)Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN), University of Notre Dame · 2024 · world median 0.450.5110.45▲ Improved since 2014
Namibia: 0.511 · world median 0.45 · ND-GAIN Vulnerability (0–1, where 1 is the most vulnerable). Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN), University of Notre Dame, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0.263 to 0.655; lower is better.
Ranked 145th of 190 by Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN), University of Notre Dame.
Adjusted Net SavingsWorld Bank Group · 2021 · world median 8.389-1.8348.389▼ Worsened since 2011
Namibia: -1.834 · world median 8.389 · Adjusted net savings, including particulate emission damage (% of GNI). World Bank Group, 2021 edition, data for 2021.
Published values in that edition run from -81.62 to 32.18; higher is better.
Position 101st of 118 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Organic Agricultural AreaFAO · 2024 · world median 0.72500.725▼ Worsened since 2014
Namibia: 0 · world median 0.725 · Organic share of agricultural land (%). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 86.38; higher is better.
Position 150th of 150 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
No better end10
These describe the shape of a country — more is not better or worse, only different — so they are never ahead or behind.
Arable Land per PersonFAO · 2023 · world median 0.1090.270.109No real change since 2013
Namibia: 0.27 · world median 0.109 · Arable land (hectares per person). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 1.459.
Position 34th of 206 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Agricultural LandFAO · 2023 · world median 37.9647.1437.96No real change since 2013
Namibia: 47.14 · world median 37.96 · Agricultural land (% of land area). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0.445 to 86.48.
Position 70th of 209 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Total Natural Resources Rents (% of GDP)World Bank Group · 2021 · world median 1.7084.0311.708Moved since 2011
Namibia: 4.031 · world median 1.708 · Natural resources rents (% of GDP). World Bank Group, 2021 edition, data for 2021.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 61.03.
Position 76th of 180 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Water Withdrawal by SectorFAO · 2022 · world median 62.1471.4862.14No real change since 2012
Namibia: 71.48 · world median 62.14 · Freshwater withdrawn for agriculture (% of total). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2022 edition, data for 2022.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 99.48.
Position 71st of 171 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Agricultural EmissionsFAO · 2023 · world median 8,6358,4918,635No real change since 2013
Namibia: 8,491 · world median 8,635 · Farm-gate emissions (kt CO₂eq). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 1,044,508.
Position 101st of 193 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Pesticide Use per HectareFAO · 2024 · world median 1.731.221.73Moved since 2014
Namibia: 1.22 · world median 1.73 · Pesticide use (kg per hectare of cropland). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 37.72.
Position 105th of 178 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Land Under Cereal ProductionFAO · 2023 · world median 689,278339,089689,278Moved since 2013
Namibia: 339,089 · world median 689,278 · Land under cereal production (hectares). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 103,715,108.
Position 109th of 179 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Fertilizer Consumption per HectareFAO · 2023 · world median 87.3627.0787.36Moved since 2013
Namibia: 27.07 · world median 87.36 · Fertilizer consumption (kg per hectare of arable land). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 2,926.
Position 138th of 188 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Forest AreaFAO · 2023 · world median 31.087.80531.08No real change since 2013
Namibia: 7.805 · world median 31.08 · Forest area (% of land area). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 94.45.
Position 173rd of 210 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Livestock DensityFAO · 2023 · world median 0.5350.060.535No real change since 2013
Namibia: 0.06 · world median 0.535 · Livestock units per hectare of agricultural land. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0.02 to 43.97.
Position 181st of 188 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
No current reading for Namibia
Agricultural Irrigated Land and Ecological Footprint. Listed rather than hidden, so the page can be checked against it.
05Country Index 2026
Environment & Sustainability among Namibia’s 16 topics
Environment & Sustainability is Namibia’s best-placed topic of 16. Strongest first; each marker sits at the position divided by that topic’s field, so fields of different sizes compare fairly.
- Environment & Sustainability14th of 1812/3 keys
- Energy49th of 1933/3 keys
- Peace & Security49th of 1774/4 keys
- Democracy & Civil Liberties59th of 1983/3 keys
- Gender & Equality69th of 1834/4 keys
- Governance & Institutionsjoint 84th of 1944/4 keys
- Economy & Innovation100th of 1764/4 keys
- Education & Knowledge99th of 1713/4 keys
- Digital & Technology117th of 1983/3 keys
- Mobility & Trade95th of 1473/3 keys
- Development & Human Capital129th of 1963/3 keys
- Risk & Resilience133rd of 1923/3 keys
- Work & Labour157th of 1824/4 keys
- Health & Wellbeing175th of 2003/4 keys
- Food & Agriculture162nd of 1754/4 keys
- Poverty & Inequality150th of 1592/2 keys
06The top of the list
Who leads on environment & sustainability
The three countries placed highest of 181, and the leaders Namibia can most readily be measured against.
1
DR CongoMiddle Africa
1st of 181 · 3 of 3 keys
Photo: Christina Bergey derivative work: Jjtkk · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale
2
MozambiqueEastern Africa
2nd of 181 · 3 of 3 keys
Photo: Stig Nygaard derivative work: Jjtkk · CC BY 2.0, greyscale
3
Guinea-BissauWestern Africa
3rd of 181 · 2 of 3 keys
Photo: (WT-en) Pis bus at English Wikivoyage · Public domain, greyscale
Placed highest nearby
Highest in Africa
DR Congo1st3/3 keysHighest in Southern Africa
Namibia14th2/3 keys
Positions out of 181 placed on the topic. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed, and the top of the list is often held on fewer of them.
07Questions
Namibia on environment & sustainability: questions answered
Every answer is built from the numbers on this page, so none can say something the page does not.
How does Namibia rank on environment & sustainability?
Namibia is placed 14th of 181 countries on Environment & Sustainability in the Country Index 2026, from 2 of its 3 key statistics (CO₂ Emissions per Capita and Water Stress). The position is this site’s ordering of published statistics, not a rank any publisher printed.
What is the latest CO₂ Emissions per Capita figure for Namibia?
1.145 in 2024 (fossil CO₂ (tonnes per person)), according to Global Carbon Project. The world median in the same edition was 3.21.
What is the latest Water Stress figure for Namibia?
0.31 in 2023 (freshwater withdrawal as a share of available resources (%)), according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The world median in the same edition was 10.
How does Namibia compare with South Africa on environment & sustainability?
South Africa is placed 158th of 181, and Namibia 14th. CO₂ Emissions per Capita: South Africa 6.872, Namibia 1.145; Water Stress: South Africa 67.6, Namibia 0.31.
How have Namibia’s environment & sustainability figures changed?
CO₂ Emissions per Capita rose from 0.945 in 2000 to 1.145 in 2024; Water Stress fell from 0.92 in 2000 to 0.31 in 2023.
Which environment & sustainability statistics are missing for Namibia?
No current reading is published for Namibia on Agricultural Irrigated Land and Ecological Footprint. They are listed rather than hidden, so the evidence on the page can be checked against it.
08Keep reading
Explore further
Namibia, topic by topic
- Governance & Institutions=84th of 194
- Economy & Innovation100th of 176
- Work & Labour157th of 182
- Education & Knowledge99th of 171
- Health & Wellbeing175th of 200
- Development & Human Capital129th of 196
- Gender & Equality69th of 183
- Democracy & Civil Liberties59th of 198
- Peace & Security49th of 177
- Risk & Resilience133rd of 192
- Mobility & Trade95th of 147
- Food & Agriculture162nd of 175
- Poverty & Inequality150th of 159
- Energy49th of 193
- Digital & Technology117th of 198
- The full Namibia profile
Nearby, on environment & sustainability
The key statistics, for every country
09Method
Method, sources and how to cite
What this topic does not measure
Air quality and biodiversity are not keys, because the site does not yet hold data for them that passes every test. Forest cover, farmland, organic farming, farm emissions and the renewable share of electricity are published here as context. Exposure to natural hazards belongs to Risk & Resilience.
How the Environment & Sustainability standing is decided, step by step
A standing is a place in a list, not a mark out of anything. This one is part of the Country Index 2026, and it is worked out like this.
- A few key indicators decide it; the rest are context. 3 indicators on this topic are keys and 25 are charted alongside them without a vote. That split is the point: if every statistic voted, importing five more of one kind would quietly change what the topic is about.
- Each key is read at one edition. ⚠ The keys behind this standing do not all describe the same year — they run from 2023 to 2025, because publishers release on their own schedules. Read the standing as “how this country places now”, not as a snapshot of one year.
- Every country’s published value is turned into a place within that one key’s own field, and then expressed as a share of that field — how far down this key’s list the country sits, rather than how many countries are above it. Keys where a higher published number is worse (terrorism, hunger, disaster risk) are turned round first, so the good end is always the same end.
- Dividing by the field first is the whole reason this works. A place carries the size of its list inside it: 22nd of 44 and 108th of 215 are the same showing, and averaging the numbers 22 and 108 says loudly that they are not. Fields on this site run from about 44 countries to about 215, so averaging raw places would reward a country for happening to be measured in small ones. Dividing each place by its own field removes the size and leaves only the showing.
- The shares are averaged, plainly. One key, one vote — no key is weighted above another, because any weighting would be this site’s opinion presented as a measurement. Countries are then put in order by that average, and the average itself is never published. It is our arithmetic with nothing anchoring it, so printing it would invite it to be read as a measurement somebody made. The position it produces, the band, and the keys it was built from are all published instead — every one of them checkable against the tables on this page.
- A country needs 2 of this topic’s 3 keys — half, rounded up, and never fewer than 2. A standing built from one reading, printed beside one built from four, is two different things sharing a column heading. 181 countries clear the bar here.
- A key has to earn its vote every edition. It must measure at least 120 countries (below that it starts measuring who was surveyed rather than the world), it must not have more than 10% of its field tied at either end, and it must not repeat another key in the same topic — Spearman correlation above 0.92 counts as repeating. A topic needs at least 2 surviving keys to place anyone at all; this one has 3.
- A standing is relative, and the grouping is ours. It says where a country places against the others measured alongside it, so it moves when they move. The publishers listed on this page did not agree to be read together, and each measures its subject its own way: the underlying numbers are theirs, the ordering on top is this site’s — the same method as the rest of the Country Index, applied to one subject instead of all of them.
The key statistics and their licences
- CO₂ Emissions per Capita — Global Carbon Project, CC BY 4.0
- Water Stress — Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), CC BY 4.0
- Ecological Footprint — Global Footprint Network, CC BY-SA 4.0
The other 24 statistics on this page come from 9 publishers, each named beside its numbers, with every edition and licence on the datasets pages.
The standing itself is part of the Country Index 2026, published under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photographs
Namibia’s banner and the countries placed highest, from their profiles: Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale, each used under the licence named.
- Namibia (banner) — Hans Hillewaert derivative work: Jjtkk, CC BY-SA 3.0
- DR Congo — Christina Bergey derivative work: Jjtkk, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Mozambique — Stig Nygaard derivative work: Jjtkk, CC BY 2.0
- Guinea-Bissau — (WT-en) Pis bus at English Wikivoyage, Public domain
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Namibia: Environment & Sustainability — standing and statistics, Country Index 2026. https://nationsinquiry.com/countries/namibia/environment