Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Cambodia
Cambodia: Government spending on education as a share of GDP was 2.2% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Cambodia, 1998–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Cambodia recorded 2.2% for government spending on education as a share of gdp in 2023.
The figure is up 11.4% on the previous year and up 38.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Cambodia peaked at 2.2% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 1.2%, in 2011.
That places Cambodia 176th out of 199 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 18 years of available data.
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Cambodia, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 1.3% | — |
| 2000 | 1.6% | +30.9% |
| 2001 | 1.7% | +0.4% |
| 2002 | 1.6% | -1.6% |
| 2004 | 1.6% | -4.2% |
| 2007 | 1.4% | -12.6% |
| 2009 | 1.4% | +1.6% |
| 2010 | 1.2% | -9.9% |
| 2011 | 1.2% | -3.2% |
| 2012 | 1.2% | +1.8% |
| 2013 | 1.6% | +28.1% |
| 2014 | 1.4% | -8.2% |
| 2018 | 1.6% | +10.8% |
| 2019 | 2.1% | +33.1% |
| 2020 | 2.2% | +5.4% |
| 2021 | 2.0% | -12.7% |
| 2022 | 2.0% | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 2.2% | +11.4% |
Cambodia compared with similar countries
- Cambodia's 2.2% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 4.0%, 54% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Cambodia's 2.2% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 4.2%, 51% of the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 1.3% | 1.3% | 1.3% | 1 |
| 2000s | 1.5% | 1.4% | 1.7% | 6 |
| 2010s | 1.5% | 1.2% | 2.1% | 7 |
| 2020s | 2.1% | 2.0% | 2.2% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Cambodia
More education data for Cambodia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 107,312 (2021)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 124,310 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 199,569 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 201,390 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.17 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.27 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 3.07 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1285 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education as a share of gdp in Cambodia?
- Government spending on education as a share of gdp in Cambodia was 2.2% in 2023, 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 Cambodia?
- The highest recorded value was 2.2% in 2020.
- What is the lowest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Cambodia?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.2% in 2011.
- How does Cambodia rank for government spending on education as a share of gdp?
- Cambodia ranks 176th out of 199 countries with data for 2023.
- Is government spending on education as a share of gdp rising or falling in Cambodia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 38.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Cambodia 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.