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Photo: Peace Batuma · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale
Topic 07 of 12 · Country Index 2026
Rwanda: Environment & Sustainability
How much pressure does a country put on nature, and how is it changing course?
Rwanda is placed 43rd of 161 countries on environment & sustainability in the Country Index 2026, from 3 of its 3 key statistics. Readings behind it: Renewable Share of Electricity Generation 49.56 (2024); Organic Agricultural Area 0.28 (2024).
Environment & Sustainability
43rd
of 161 countries placed
Placed from 3 of 3 key statistics
01The evidence
The 3 key statistics that decide it
Only these place Rwanda 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 in that edition, lowest on the left.
Key 1 of 3
Renewable Share of Electricity Generation
Ember
Why it is a key: How much of the electricity a country actually generates already comes from renewable sources.
2024 edition · data for 2024 · CC BY 4.0
49.56
Renewables (% of electricity generated)
Higher is better
Rwanda: 49.56. Across the 193 countries in this edition, values run from 0 (Gambia) to 100 (Paraguay); the world median is 31.14.
- World median
- 31.14
- Best in Eastern Africa
- 100 Ethiopia
- Land neighbours
- Burundi 75.51 · DR Congo 100 · Tanzania 32.92 · Uganda 97.07
Each grey tick is one of 193 countries in the 2024 edition.
Key 2 of 3
Organic Agricultural Area
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Why it is a key: Farmland managed without synthetic inputs — a practice that reduces pressure, where the footprint measures the pressure itself. ⚠ A thin pairing: this topic gets stronger keys when carbon per capita and air quality are imported.
2024 edition · data for 2024 · CC BY 4.0
0.28
Organic share of agricultural land (%)
Higher is better
Rwanda: 0.28. Across the 156 countries in this edition, values run from 0 (Afghanistan) to 86.38 (Samoa); the world median is 0.725.
- World median
- 0.725
- Best in Eastern Africa
- 3.14 Uganda
- Land neighbours
- Burundi 0.08 · DR Congo 0.29 · Tanzania 0.47 · Uganda 3.14
Each grey tick is one of 156 countries in the 2024 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
0.814
Ecological Footprint (global hectares per person)
Lower is better
Rwanda: 0.814. 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 Eastern Africa
- 0.588 Mozambique
- Land neighbours
- Burundi 0.618 · DR Congo 0.647 · Tanzania 0.967 · Uganda 1.064
Each grey tick is one of 126 countries in the 2025 edition.
02Over time
Which way Rwanda 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.
Renewable Share of Electricity Generation
Renewables (% of electricity generated) · higher is better
RwandaWorld median
Rwanda fell from 62.5 in 2000 to 49.56 in 2024; the world median went from 14.98 to 31.14.
Every year’s figures
Year Rwanda World median 2024 49.6 31.136 2023 49.1 26.890 2022 57.7 27.359 2021 59.0 24.983 2020 62.9 25.000 2019 50.6 23.341 2018 41.5 22.936 2017 46.2 19.936 2016 50.0 20.000 2015 56.9 18.557 2014 48.8 19.081 2013 40.5 18.562 2012 46.2 16.909 2011 42.9 15.798 2010 39.3 16.875 2009 51.6 15.276 2008 55.2 14.901 2007 48.0 14.229 2006 48.1 14.041 2005 52.6 14.768 2004 57.1 13.794 2003 66.7 13.505 2002 58.8 12.500 2001 60.0 13.889 2000 62.5 14.977 Organic Agricultural Area
Organic share of agricultural land (%) · higher is better
RwandaWorld median
Rwanda rose from 0.01 in 2005 to 0.28 in 2024; the world median went from 0.345 to 0.725.
Every year’s figures
Year Rwanda World median 2024 0.28 0.725 2023 0.30 0.780 2022 0.27 0.740 2021 0.24 0.710 2020 0.29 0.665 2019 0.07 0.550 2018 0.11 0.490 2017 0.07 0.630 2016 — 0.545 2015 — 0.540 2014 0.11 0.470 2013 0.19 0.440 2012 0.19 0.480 2011 0.19 0.460 2010 0.18 0.330 2009 0.19 0.335 2008 0.18 0.290 2007 0.03 0.370 2006 0.03 0.305 2005 0.01 0.345 Ecological Footprint
Ecological Footprint (global hectares per person) · lower is better
RwandaWorld median
Rwanda rose from 0.652 in 2000 to 0.814 in 2025; the world median went from 1.95 to 2.296.
Every year’s figures
Year Rwanda World median 2025 0.81410 2.2963 2024 0.82960 2.3139 2023 0.84835 2.3174 2022 0.85830 2.2724 2021 0.82095 2.3370 2020 0.80606 2.3057 2019 0.82165 2.2578 2018 0.84007 2.2485 2017 0.81415 2.2209 2016 0.77939 2.2308 2015 0.76101 2.3000 2014 0.73378 2.3814 2013 0.79710 2.3363 2012 0.81298 2.4200 2011 0.81688 2.4794 2010 0.80069 2.3679 2009 0.77462 2.2224 2008 0.72753 2.1727 2007 0.68341 2.2036 2006 0.68602 2.1203 2005 0.66875 2.1512 2004 0.67095 2.1055 2003 0.68736 2.0449 2002 0.71813 2.1195 2001 0.68649 2.2004 2000 0.65189 1.9499
03In context
Rwanda beside its neighbours
A position reads best beside the countries around it. Every position below is a place among all 161 countries on environment & sustainability, never a place within the region.
1st161stNot placed · 63 countries with too few key statisticsNo data
Rwanda and the countries it borders
The standing is each country’s place among all 161 placed on the topic; the other columns are the publishers’ own values, read at the edition the standing used.
| Country | Standing | Renewable Share of Electricity GenerationRenewables (% of electricity generated) | Organic Agricultural AreaOrganic share of agricultural land (%) | Ecological FootprintEcological Footprint (global hectares per person) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Uganda | 5th | 97.07 | 3.14 | 1.064 |
 DR Congo | 10th | 100 | 0.29 | 0.647 |
 Burundi | =23rd | 75.51 | 0.08 | 0.618 |
| Rwanda | 43rd | 49.56 | 0.28 | 0.814 |
 Tanzania | 58th | 32.92 | 0.47 | 0.967 |
“—” means the publisher gives no reading for that country in that edition. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed.
Across Eastern Africa
Every country in the sub-region, by its place among all 161.
Placed either side on environment & sustainability
The countries immediately above and below Rwanda in the topic’s list.
04Context, no vote
Where Rwanda is ahead of the world, and behind
17 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 median2
Statistics on which Rwanda does better than the middle country measured.
World Risk IndexInstitute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict (IFHV), Ruhr University Bochum · 2025 · world median 4.172.664.17No real change since 2015
Rwanda: 2.66 · 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 136th of 193 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Water StressFAO · 2023 · world median 106.5510▲ Improved since 2013
Rwanda: 6.55 · world median 10 · Freshwater withdrawal as a share of available resources (%). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0.03 to 3,851; lower is better.
Position 106th of 177 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Behind the world median4
Statistics on which Rwanda does worse than the middle country measured.
Internal Displacements by DisasterIDMC · 2024 · world median 4,75058,0004,750▼ Worsened since 2015
Rwanda: 58,000 · 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 40th of 160 — 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 0.6780.5670.678▲ Improved since 2013
Rwanda: 0.567 · 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 120th of 156 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Renewable Internal Freshwater Resources per CapitaFAO · 2022 · world median 2,528695.922,528▼ Worsened since 2012
Rwanda: 695.92 · 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 146th of 181 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Adjusted Net SavingsWorld Bank Group · 2021 · world median 8.389-1.4988.389▼ Worsened since 2011
Rwanda: -1.498 · 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 99th of 118 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
No better end11
These describe the shape of a country — more is not better or worse, only different — so they are never ahead or behind.
Agricultural LandFAO · 2023 · world median 37.9676.3337.96Moved since 2013
Rwanda: 76.33 · 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 9th 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 1.7084.0171.708Moved since 2011
Rwanda: 4.017 · 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 77th of 180 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Livestock DensityFAO · 2023 · world median 0.5350.570.535Moved since 2013
Rwanda: 0.57 · 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 87th of 188 — 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 62.1460.0762.14No real change since 2012
Rwanda: 60.07 · 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 90th of 171 — 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 689,278527,326689,278Moved since 2013
Rwanda: 527,326 · 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 97th of 179 — 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 1.731.211.73Moved since 2014
Rwanda: 1.21 · 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 106th of 178 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Agricultural EmissionsFAO · 2023 · world median 8,6354,7308,635No real change since 2013
Rwanda: 4,730 · 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 123rd of 193 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Arable Land per PersonFAO · 2023 · world median 0.1090.0830.109Moved since 2013
Rwanda: 0.083 · 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 128th of 206 — 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 87.3631.8387.36Moved since 2013
Rwanda: 31.83 · 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 134th 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 31.0811.3131.08No real change since 2013
Rwanda: 11.31 · 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 158th of 210 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Agricultural Irrigated LandFAO · 2023 · world median 3.660.4223.66No earlier reading
Rwanda: 0.422 · world median 3.66 · Irrigated share of agricultural land (%). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0.003 to 89.04.
Position 103rd of 121 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
No current reading for Rwanda
World Energy Trilemma Index. Listed rather than hidden, so the page can be checked against it.
05Country Index 2026
Environment & Sustainability among Rwanda’s 11 topics
Environment & Sustainability is Rwanda’s best-placed topic of 11. Strongest first; each marker sits at the position divided by that topic’s field, so fields of different sizes compare fairly.
- Environment & Sustainability43rd of 1613/3 keys
- Gender & Equality53rd of 1783/3 keys
- Governance & Institutions60th of 1935/5 keys
- Risk & Resiliencejoint 88th of 1913/3 keys
- Education & Knowledge109th of 1824/4 keys
- Peace & Security118th of 1773/3 keys
- Democracy & Civil Liberties141st of 1983/3 keys
- Health & Wellbeing164th of 2013/4 keys
- Development & Human Capital164th of 1943/3 keys
- Work & Labourjoint 158th of 1824/4 keys
- Economy & Innovation139th of 1502/3 keys
No standing on Mobility & Connectivity: too few of those topics’ key statistics are published for this country.
06The top of the list
Who leads on environment & sustainability
The three countries placed highest of 161, and the leaders Rwanda can most readily be measured against.
1
UruguaySouth America
1st of 161 · 2 of 3 keys
2
AngolaMiddle Africa
2nd of 161 · 2 of 3 keys
Photo: Paulo César Santos derivative work: Jjtkk · CC0, greyscale
3
Timor-LesteSouth-eastern Asia
3rd of 161 · 2 of 3 keys
Photo: Nhobgood Nick Hobgood · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale
_banner_Kalandula_waterfalls_of_the_Lucala_River.jpg){kind=link}
Placed highest nearby
Highest placed on all 3 keys
Sierra Leone4th3/3 keysHighest in Africa
Angola2nd2/3 keysHighest in Eastern Africa
Uganda5th3/3 keysThis page
Rwanda43rd3/3 keys
Positions out of 161 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
Rwanda 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 Rwanda rank on environment & sustainability?
Rwanda is placed 43rd of 161 countries on Environment & Sustainability in the Country Index 2026, from 3 of its 3 key statistics (Renewable Share of Electricity Generation, Organic Agricultural Area and Ecological Footprint). The position is this site’s ordering of published statistics, not a rank any publisher printed.
What is the latest Renewable Share of Electricity Generation figure for Rwanda?
49.56 in 2024 (renewables (% of electricity generated)), according to Ember. The world median in the same edition was 31.14.
What is the latest Organic Agricultural Area figure for Rwanda?
0.28 in 2024 (organic share of agricultural land (%)), according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The world median in the same edition was 0.725.
How does Rwanda compare with DR Congo on environment & sustainability?
DR Congo is placed 10th of 161, and Rwanda 43rd. Renewable Share of Electricity Generation: DR Congo 100, Rwanda 49.56; Organic Agricultural Area: DR Congo 0.29, Rwanda 0.28; Ecological Footprint: DR Congo 0.647, Rwanda 0.814.
How have Rwanda’s environment & sustainability figures changed?
Renewable Share of Electricity Generation fell from 62.5 in 2000 to 49.56 in 2024; Organic Agricultural Area rose from 0.01 in 2005 to 0.28 in 2024; Ecological Footprint rose from 0.652 in 2000 to 0.814 in 2025.
Which environment & sustainability statistics are missing for Rwanda?
No current reading is published for Rwanda on World Energy Trilemma Index. They are listed rather than hidden, so the evidence on the page can be checked against it.
08Keep reading
Explore further
Rwanda, topic by topic
- Governance & Institutions60th of 193
- Economy & Innovation139th of 150
- Work & Labour=158th of 182
- Education & Knowledge109th of 182
- Health & Wellbeing164th of 201
- Development & Human Capital164th of 194
- Gender & Equality53rd of 178
- Democracy & Civil Liberties141st of 198
- Peace & Security118th of 177
- Risk & Resilience=88th of 191
- The full Rwanda profile
Nearby, on environment & sustainability
The key statistics, for every country
09Method
Method, sources and how to cite
What this topic does not measure
Carbon emissions per person, air quality and biodiversity are not yet keys, because the site does not yet hold data for them that passes every test. Forest cover, water use, farmland and farm emissions 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 18 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 2024 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. 161 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
- Renewable Share of Electricity Generation — Ember, CC BY 4.0
- Organic Agricultural Area — 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 17 statistics on this page come from 5 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
Rwanda’s banner and the countries placed highest, from their profiles: Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale, each used under the licence named.
- Rwanda (banner) — Peace Batuma, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Uruguay — Elemaki, CC BY 3.0
- Angola — Paulo César Santos derivative work: Jjtkk, CC0
- Timor-Leste — Nhobgood Nick Hobgood, CC BY-SA 3.0
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Rwanda: Environment & Sustainability — standing and statistics, Country Index 2026. https://nationsinquiry.com/countries/rwanda/environment