Current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of in South Africa
South Africa: Current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of was 20.8% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of in South Africa, 2001–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of in South Africa is 20.8%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 22 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.0% on the previous year and up 18.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of in South Africa peaked at 20.8% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 2.3%, in 2003.
South Africa ranks 25th of 117 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
Current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 7.7% | — |
| 2003 | 2.3% | -69.5% |
| 2004 | 8.2% | +250.1% |
| 2005 | 12.3% | +50.8% |
| 2006 | 17.5% | +41.8% |
| 2007 | 13.9% | -20.6% |
| 2008 | 14.9% | +7.1% |
| 2009 | 15.7% | +5.7% |
| 2010 | 16.2% | +2.8% |
| 2011 | 15.8% | -2.1% |
| 2012 | 16.3% | +2.9% |
| 2013 | 16.9% | +3.8% |
| 2014 | 17.6% | +4.2% |
| 2015 | 16.8% | -4.8% |
| 2017 | 16.5% | -1.2% |
| 2018 | 16.1% | -2.7% |
| 2019 | 17.2% | +6.8% |
| 2020 | 17.9% | +4.2% |
| 2021 | 20.1% | +12.2% |
| 2022 | 20.1% | -0.0% |
| 2023 | 20.4% | +1.4% |
| 2024 | 20.8% | +2.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 11.6% | 2.3% | 17.5% | 8 |
| 2010s | 16.6% | 15.8% | 17.6% | 9 |
| 2020s | 19.9% | 17.9% | 20.8% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- 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)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.119 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of in South Africa?
- Current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of in South Africa was 20.8% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 20.8% in 2024.
- What is the lowest current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.3% in 2003.
- How does South Africa rank for current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of?
- South Africa ranks 25th out of 117 countries with data for 2024.
- Is current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 18.1%. 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 Current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure in primary public institutions (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release