City report · Rwanda
Kigali Air quality today
Air quality in Kigali currently reads AQI 65 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
AQI 65
Air quality right now
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 16.5
- tree cover
- 19.8%
- trees in this area
- 62.2K
- more trees needed
- 32.0K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Inyarurembo, Kigali, Rwanda (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 3, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Kigali · AQI 65 (Moderate)
Kigali's tree count comes to 62,204 trees across 12.57 km², 10 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 32,044 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Kigali today: AQI 65, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 18:04 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Kigali_Rwanda, 1.2 km away · median of 2 stations
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
16.5
PM10
—
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: OpenAQ · Clarity
- Outdoor exercise
- Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier
- Windows
- Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution
- Mask
- Not needed for most people
- Air purifier
- Worth running if you are sensitive
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Kigali's daily AQI at 77 on average, from 61 on Nov 6 to an hourly peak of 134 on Nov 8.
Where Kigali stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Kigali: Below target
19.8% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
62,204
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
32,044
CO₂ if planted / yr
705.0 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Kigali lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Kigali has lost about 220 hectares of forest (about 310 football pitches): 21% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (96%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 220 haabout 310 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 21%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 211 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2008, when about 25 hectares of forest were lost.
Hectares of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 14 ha | under 1 ha | 14 ha |
| 2002 | 11 ha | under 1 ha | 11 ha |
| 2003 | 13 ha | under 1 ha | 13 ha |
| 2004 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
| 2005 | 4 ha | under 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2006 | 16 ha | under 1 ha | 16 ha |
| 2007 | 19 ha | under 1 ha | 20 ha |
| 2008 | 24 ha | 1 ha | 25 ha |
| 2009 | 12 ha | under 1 ha | 13 ha |
| 2010 | 19 ha | under 1 ha | 20 ha |
| 2011 | 7 ha | under 1 ha | 7 ha |
| 2012 | 6 ha | under 1 ha | 7 ha |
| 2013 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2014 | 6 ha | under 1 ha | 6 ha |
| 2015 | 11 ha | 2 ha | 13 ha |
| 2016 | 5 ha | under 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2017 | 4 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
| 2018 | 8 ha | under 1 ha | 8 ha |
| 2019 | 4 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
| 2020 | 11 ha | 1 ha | 12 ha |
| 2021 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2022 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2023 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2024 | 4 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
| 2025 | 4 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Kigali?
- Towns and roadscleared for good74% · 162 ha
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good22% · 49 ha
- Loggingcan grow back1.5% · 3 ha
Also: mining and energy, unknown causes.
Causes for 2025 are estimates, based on what caused forest loss in the same places up to 2024.
Forest gained and lost, 2000–2020
- Forest in 2000
- 4,110 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 3,500 ha
- Overall change
- −607 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Kigali shrank from about 4,110 hectares to 3,500 hectares, a net loss of about 607 hectares (−15%). New forest grew on about 46 hectares, but 653 hectares were lost.
These 2000 and 2020 maps, from the University of Maryland, count any land with trees taller than 5 m as forest, including plantations and orchards. Forest that was cut or burned and had grown back by 2020 counts in both years, so the loss here is smaller than the yearly figures.
These figures cover everything within 10 km of the city center, a wider area than the report above, because forest is usually lost at a city's edges.
Source: Hansen/UMD/Google/USGS/NASA, Global Forest Change (GFC-2025-v1.13); causes: WRI/Google DeepMind drivers of forest loss; both CC BY 4.0, summed by Airleaf for each area. Forest gained and lost 2000–2020: Potapov et al. 2022, UMD GLAD Global Land Cover and Land Use Change, CC BY 4.0. Images: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data. How it's measured
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Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
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Frequently asked
Questions about Kigali
What is the air quality (AQI) in Kigali right now?
The latest reading for Kigali shows an AQI of 65 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 18:04 local time by 2 ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ (the median of their readings; the nearest is Kigali_Rwanda, 1.2 km away). The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Kigali today?
At AQI 65 (Moderate): fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier. Windows: fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution. Masks: not needed for most people. The reading changes through the day, so check again before a long run or ride.
What has the air quality in Kigali been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Kigali's daily AQI at 77 on average, from 61 on Nov 6 to an hourly peak of 134 on Nov 8. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Kigali lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Kigali has lost about 220 hectares of forest (about 310 football pitches): 21% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (96%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Kigali shrank from about 4,110 hectares to 3,500 hectares, a net loss of about 607 hectares (−15%). New forest grew on about 46 hectares, but 653 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Kigali?
Kigali has an estimated 62,204 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 19.8% tree cover, 10 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Kigali need?
Kigali needs roughly 32,044 more trees to close a 10-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 705.0 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Kigali's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Inyarurembo, via OpenAQ; the 7-day trend is the Open-Meteo / CAMS model's estimate. Tree cover is measured from Sentinel-2 L2A (ESA Copernicus) via Earth Search satellite imagery at 10 m detail across a 2 km radius around Inyarurembo; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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