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 38.8% 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 38.8%, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of down 15.2% on the previous year and down 1.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of in South Africa peaked at 45.7% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 7.2%, in 2001.
South Africa ranks 29th of 103 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 11 years of available data.
Current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 7.2% | — |
| 2003 | 15.6% | +116.6% |
| 2014 | 39.3% | +151.3% |
| 2017 | 41.6% | +5.9% |
| 2018 | 38.0% | -8.6% |
| 2019 | 43.0% | +13.0% |
| 2020 | 44.3% | +3.1% |
| 2021 | 39.4% | -11.1% |
| 2022 | 40.8% | +3.6% |
| 2023 | 45.7% | +11.9% |
| 2024 | 38.8% | -15.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 11.4% | 7.2% | 15.6% | 2 |
| 2010s | 40.5% | 38.0% | 43.0% | 4 |
| 2020s | 41.8% | 38.8% | 45.7% | 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 38.8% 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 45.7% in 2023.
- What is the lowest current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.2% in 2001.
- How does South Africa rank for current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of?
- South Africa ranks 29th out of 103 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 down 1.4%. 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 Current expenditure other than staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure in tertiary public institutions (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 11 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release