GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024 vs South Africa: Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government

GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024
12.4%
in 2025
South Africa
19.1%
in 2025
GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024 rank
29th
South Africa rank
26th

Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government over time

  • GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024
  • South Africa
05101520198720062025

How they compare

South Africa currently reports 19.1% against 12.4% in GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024, a difference of 6.7%.

That makes South Africa's figure about 1.5 times GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024's.

The two have swapped places 3 times across 26 shared years of data; in 2000 it was GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024 ahead.

GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024 ranks 29th and South Africa ranks 26th of 43 groups.

South Africa has averaged higher in every one of the 3 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024 South Africa Difference Ahead
2000s 16.9% 17.2% 0.3% South Africa
2010s 15.1% 18.8% 3.7% South Africa
2020s 12.0% 19.1% 7.1% South Africa

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher expenditure on education as a percentage of total government, GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024 or South Africa?
South Africa, at 19.1% against 12.4% in GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024 as of 2025.
What is the difference in expenditure on education as a percentage of total government between GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024 and South Africa?
6.7%, with South Africa ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024 and South Africa?
26 years are reported by both, from 2000 to 2025.
How do GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024 and South Africa rank globally for expenditure on education as a percentage of total government?
GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024 ranks 29th and South Africa ranks 26th of 43 groups.
Where does this data come from?
UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government expenditure (%) (UIS calculation). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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GPE: Upper Middle Income Wb Fy24, December 2024 vs South Africa: Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 18 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/compare/expenditure-on-education-as-a-percentage-of-total-government-expenditure-percent-uis/gpe-upper-middle-income-wb-fy24-december-2024/south-africa/

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About this data

Indicator
Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government expenditure (%) (UIS calculation)
Unit
UIS calculation
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics)
Coverage
240 places, 5,509 data points, 1980–2025
Last refreshed

February 2026 Data Release