Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Bangladesh
Bangladesh: Government spending on education as a share of GDP was 2.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Bangladesh, 1979–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2024, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Bangladesh stood at 2.0%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 5.9% on the previous year and down 3.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Bangladesh peaked at 2.2% in 2007 and was at its lowest, 0.9%, in 1980.
That places Bangladesh 178th out of 199 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 38 years of available data.
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Bangladesh, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 1.1% | — |
| 1980 | 0.9% | -17.1% |
| 1981 | 1.1% | +14.3% |
| 1982 | 1.0% | -5.6% |
| 1983 | 1.0% | +2.1% |
| 1984 | 1.2% | +18.4% |
| 1985 | 1.3% | +3.9% |
| 1986 | 1.3% | +5.7% |
| 1987 | 1.5% | +12.7% |
| 1990 | 1.5% | +0.4% |
| 1991 | 1.4% | -6.2% |
| 1992 | 1.6% | +14.5% |
| 1993 | 1.7% | +3.7% |
| 1997 | 2.0% | +15.4% |
| 1999 | 2.1% | +9.2% |
| 2000 | 2.1% | -0.4% |
| 2001 | 2.2% | +2.2% |
| 2002 | 2.0% | -7.1% |
| 2003 | 2.1% | +2.6% |
| 2004 | 1.9% | -6.2% |
| 2006 | 2.1% | +9.9% |
| 2007 | 2.2% | +3.3% |
| 2008 | 2.1% | -6.7% |
| 2009 | 1.9% | -5.6% |
| 2011 | 2.1% | +10.0% |
| 2012 | 2.2% | +2.0% |
| 2013 | 2.0% | -9.6% |
| 2014 | 2.1% | +6.7% |
| 2015 | 1.9% | -10.8% |
| 2016 | 1.3% | -31.5% |
| 2017 | 2.1% | +64.9% |
| 2018 | 2.1% | -0.9% |
| 2019 | 1.1% | -46.0% |
| 2020 | 2.1% | +89.2% |
| 2021 | 2.2% | +1.5% |
| 2022 | 2.1% | -3.9% |
| 2023 | 2.2% | +3.7% |
| 2024 | 2.0% | -5.9% |
Bangladesh compared with similar countries
- Bangladesh's 2.0% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 4.0%, 51% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Bangladesh's 2.0% is below the median for South Asia, which is 3.9%, 52% of the median. (6 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Bangladesh changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | +89.2% | 1.1% | 2.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1 |
| 1980s | 1.2% | 0.9% | 1.5% | 8 |
| 1990s | 1.7% | 1.4% | 2.1% | 6 |
| 2000s | 2.1% | 1.9% | 2.2% | 9 |
| 2010s | 1.9% | 1.1% | 2.2% | 9 |
| 2020s | 2.1% | 2.0% | 2.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Bangladesh
More education data for Bangladesh
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 571,690 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 387,056 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.73 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.77 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 15.07 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 16.69 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.67 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0961 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education as a share of gdp in Bangladesh?
- Government spending on education as a share of gdp in Bangladesh was 2.0% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Bangladesh?
- The highest recorded value was 2.2% in 2007.
- What is the lowest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Bangladesh?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.9% in 1980.
- How does Bangladesh rank for government spending on education as a share of gdp?
- Bangladesh ranks 178th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is government spending on education as a share of gdp rising or falling in Bangladesh?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Bangladesh data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Government spending on education as a share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Total annual general government spending on all levels of education, expressed as a percentage of GDP.