Completion rate, primary education, male (modelled data) (%) in South Africa
South Africa: Completion rate, primary education, male (modelled data) (%) was 96.0% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
96.0%
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
87th
of 165 countries
All-time high
96.0%
in 2025
All-time low
68.1%
in 1981
Years of data
45
1981–2025
Completion rate, primary education, male (modelled data) in South Africa, 1981–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2025, completion rate, primary education, male (modelled data) in South Africa stood at 96.0%. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
The figure is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 3.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, completion rate, primary education, male (modelled data) in South Africa peaked at 96.0% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 68.1%, in 1981.
That places South Africa 87th out of 165 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Completion rate, primary education, male (modelled data) (%) in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 68.1% | — |
| 1982 | 69.2% | +1.6% |
| 1983 | 70.5% | +1.8% |
| 1984 | 71.7% | +1.7% |
| 1985 | 72.8% | +1.6% |
| 1986 | 73.8% | +1.4% |
| 1987 | 74.9% | +1.4% |
| 1988 | 76.0% | +1.5% |
| 1989 | 77.1% | +1.5% |
| 1990 | 78.2% | +1.3% |
| 1991 | 79.1% | +1.1% |
| 1992 | 79.8% | +0.9% |
| 1993 | 80.5% | +0.9% |
| 1994 | 81.3% | +1.0% |
| 1995 | 82.0% | +0.9% |
| 1996 | 82.8% | +0.9% |
| 1997 | 83.4% | +0.8% |
| 1998 | 83.9% | +0.6% |
| 1999 | 84.3% | +0.4% |
| 2000 | 84.7% | +0.5% |
| 2001 | 85.1% | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 85.7% | +0.6% |
| 2003 | 86.3% | +0.7% |
| 2004 | 87.0% | +0.8% |
| 2005 | 87.6% | +0.8% |
| 2006 | 88.3% | +0.8% |
| 2007 | 89.1% | +0.9% |
| 2008 | 89.8% | +0.8% |
| 2009 | 90.2% | +0.5% |
| 2010 | 90.6% | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 90.8% | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 91.2% | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 91.7% | +0.5% |
| 2014 | 92.2% | +0.6% |
| 2015 | 92.8% | +0.6% |
| 2016 | 93.2% | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 93.6% | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 93.9% | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 94.2% | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 94.5% | +0.4% |
| 2021 | 94.8% | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 95.1% | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 95.4% | +0.3% |
| 2024 | 95.7% | +0.3% |
| 2025 | 96.0% | +0.3% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 96.0% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 98.4%, 97% of the median. (50 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 96.0% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 67.1%, 1.4× the median. (45 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 72.7% | 68.1% | 77.1% | 9 |
| 1990s | 81.5% | 78.2% | 84.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 87.4% | 84.7% | 90.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 92.4% | 90.6% | 94.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 95.3% | 94.5% | 96.0% | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 94.05 (2023)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 93.94 (2023)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 181,739 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 339,638 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 410,708 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 407,696 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 5.50 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 7.52 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.44 % change on previous year (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is completion rate, primary education, male (modelled data) in South Africa?
- Completion rate, primary education, male (modelled data) in South Africa was 96.0% in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest completion rate, primary education, male (modelled data) recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 96.0% in 2025.
- What is the lowest completion rate, primary education, male (modelled data) recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 68.1% in 1981.
- How does South Africa rank for completion rate, primary education, male (modelled data)?
- South Africa ranks 87th out of 165 countries with data for 2025.
- Is completion rate, primary education, male (modelled data) rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Completion rate, primary education, male (modelled data) (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release