Saudi Arabia vs Sub-Saharan Africa: School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes

Saudi Arabia
12.78 years
in 2019
Sub-Saharan Africa
8.79 years
in 2018
Saudi Arabia rank
39th
Sub-Saharan Africa rank
40th

School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes over time

  • Saudi Arabia
  • Sub-Saharan Africa
468101214197019942019

How they compare

Saudi Arabia currently reports 12.78 years against 8.79 years in Sub-Saharan Africa, a difference of 3.99 years.

That makes Saudi Arabia's figure about 1.5 times Sub-Saharan Africa's.

The two have swapped places 1 time across 8 shared years of data; in 1979 it was Sub-Saharan Africa ahead.

Saudi Arabia ranks 39th and Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 40th of 197 countries.

Across the 3 decades both report, Saudi Arabia averaged higher in 2 and Sub-Saharan Africa in 1.

Head to head by decade

Decade Saudi Arabia Sub-Saharan Africa Difference Ahead
1970s 5.44 years 5.62 years 0.1824 years Sub-Saharan Africa
2000s 11.65 years 8.1 years 3.55 years Saudi Arabia
2010s 12.92 years 8.77 years 4.15 years Saudi Arabia

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes, Saudi Arabia or Sub-Saharan Africa?
Saudi Arabia, at 12.78 years against 8.79 years in Sub-Saharan Africa as of 2019.
What is the difference in school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes between Saudi Arabia and Sub-Saharan Africa?
3.99 years, with Saudi Arabia ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Saudi Arabia and Sub-Saharan Africa?
8 years are reported by both, from 1979 to 2018.
How do Saudi Arabia and Sub-Saharan Africa rank globally for school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes?
Saudi Arabia ranks 39th and Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 40th of 197 countries.
Where does this data come from?
UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes (years). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Saudi Arabia vs Sub-Saharan Africa: School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 12 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/compare/school-life-expectancy-primary-and-secondary-both-sexes-years/saudi-arabia/sub-saharan-africa/

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About this data

Indicator
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes (years)
Unit
years
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
242 places, 8,554 data points, 1970–2020
Last refreshed

Number of years a person of school entrance age can expect to spend within the specified level of education. For a child of a certain age a, the school life expectancy is calculated as the sum of the age specific enrolment rates for the levels of education specified. The part of the enrolment that is not distributed by age is divided by the school-age population for the level of education they are enrolled in, and multiplied by the duration of that level of education. The result is then added to the sum of the age-specific enrolment rates. A relatively high SLE indicates greater probability for children to spend more years in education and higher overall retention within the education system. It must be noted that the expected number of years does not necessarily coincide with the expected number of grades of education completed, because of repetition. Since school life expectancy is an average based on participation in different levels of education, the expected number of years of schooling may be pulled down by the magnitude of children who never go to school. Those children who are in school may benefit from many more years of education than the average.