Qatar’s expanding network of parks, landscaped areas and tree-covered spaces is giving its urban landscape a greener character, while contributing to liveability, biodiversity and climate resilience.
The Ministry of Municipality reported that Qatar’s green areas reached 21.9mn sqm in 2025, with the average green space per person rising to 6.8sqm.
The figures were highlighted as part of the ministry’s environmental sustainability efforts.
The latest figures come as Qatar continues to invest in public parks, afforestation and landscaping as part of wider efforts to improve the urban environment and quality of life.
The National Planning Council also maintains an official open-data series covering cultivated green areas, re-cultivated land, trees, shrubs and date palms, as well as roadside vegetation and median strips.
The dataset provides a mechanism for tracking the development of green infrastructure across Qatar’s municipalities.
The longer-term trend is notable, although various government sources use different definitions and metrics for green space.
Qatar’s Nationally Determined Contribution 3.0 (NDC 3.0), submitted under the Paris Agreement, states that green spaces expanded from 3.5 sq km in 2015 to 16.7sq km in 2023.
It attributes the expansion partly to the One Million Trees initiative, launched in 2019 and completed in 2022, as well as planting and landscaping incorporated into highways, industrial areas, public parks, schools and residential complexes.
The expansion has continued through the Ten Million Trees Initiative, which Qatar launched in 2022 following the completion of the One Million Tree programme.
The initiative forms part of the country’s wider efforts to restore ecosystems, increase vegetation and support biodiversity.
Qatar’s 2025 Voluntary National Review submitted to the United Nations reported that 159 parks had been established by 2024, alongside nearly 3mn sqm of developed green space.
It also said the Ten Million Trees Initiative had planted 320,000 tree seedlings at the time of reporting.
The same review reported that 27% of Qatar’s land was designated as nature reserves, covering 12 protected areas and more than 3,400 sq km.
Qatar has set a target of protecting 30% of its land and marine areas by 2030.
The expansion of greenery takes on added significance in Qatar, where extreme heat and arid conditions shape the urban environment.
For much of the year, high temperatures can make walking and outdoor recreation difficult, particularly in areas with little shade.
Trees and vegetation can provide shade and influence local temperatures, potentially making public spaces more comfortable for residents.
Research specifically on Doha supports vegetation’s cooling potential.
A 2024 study published in Sustainable Cities and Society examined land-use changes and land-surface temperatures in Doha and Al Daayen from 2000 to 2023.
It found that green areas recorded lower mean land-surface temperatures than built-up and desert areas during both summer and winter.
The study also found that the mean summer land-surface temperature increased by 7.64° Celsius over the study period, underscoring the need for urban planning measures to address rising heat.
A separate 2026 study by researchers at Qatar University examined outdoor thermal conditions in and around Doha using satellite imagery and local climate zone data.
It found that bare soil and sandy areas reached temperatures of up to 40C, while compact low-rise and heavy industrial areas recorded median summer land-surface temperatures of 37C to 39C.
In contrast, vegetated and open low-rise areas recorded lower temperatures and better thermal conditions, particularly during winter and spring.
The researchers said the findings support the strategic design of green spaces as part of climate-responsive urban planning.
International research also provides evidence that the quality and structure of greenery can influence its cooling performance.
A 2026 study in Sustainable Cities and Society, examining urban green spaces in Glasgow, found that taller trees and higher tree-cover ratios were associated with stronger cooling effects, while greater grass cover and uneven distribution of green space weakened the cooling response.
The researchers stressed that vegetation structure and surrounding urban conditions should be considered when designing climate-resilient green infrastructure.
Another 2026 review in Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews similarly found that the cooling performance of urban green infrastructure varies with scale, vegetation type, and density.
It was reported that large-scale green infrastructure can provide stronger cooling over wider areas, and that forests generally provide greater cooling than shrubs and grasslands.
For Qatar, however, the effectiveness of greenery is not simply a matter of adding more vegetation.
A 2024 study published in Ecological Informatics used satellite imagery and NDVI (normalised difference vegetation index) data to examine changes in Qatar’s urban green space from 2000 to 2022.
It found that preparations for the 2022 FIFA World Cup contributed significantly to the growth and restructuring of urban green space.
The researchers estimated that the World Cup preparation and hosting period accounted for 73.2% of Qatar’s overall urban green-space expansion during the study period and increased the minimum level of green exposure experienced by citizens by 8.7 times.
The study also found that green-space expansion was accompanied by changes in the pattern and fragmentation of green areas, highlighting the importance of how greenery is distributed across the urban landscape rather than simply measuring its total area.
The environmental value of Qatar’s greening efforts extends beyond temperature.
Vegetation can provide habitat and food for birds, insects and other organisms, while connected parks and green corridors can help create more continuous urban habitat.
Qatar’s broader conservation efforts aim to protect natural ecosystems and biodiversity, with nature reserves covering more than a quarter of the country’s land area.
Qatar’s NDC 3.0 also identifies afforestation and ecosystem restoration as part of its climate and biodiversity efforts, including large-scale planting, mangrove restoration and the integration of greenery into urban development.