Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Guyana
Guyana: Government spending on education as a share of GDP was 4.5% in 2018. ▼ Falling
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Guyana, 1970–2018
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2018, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Guyana stood at 4.5%.
That represents a change of down 4.6% on the previous year and up 86.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Guyana peaked at 9.4% in 1979 and was at its lowest, 2.2%, in 2009.
Guyana ranks 84th of 199 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Guyana, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 4.3% | — |
| 1977 | 7.1% | +63.8% |
| 1979 | 9.4% | +32.3% |
| 1983 | 8.3% | -12.0% |
| 1984 | 7.2% | -12.4% |
| 1994 | 3.7% | -48.5% |
| 1995 | 3.6% | -3.1% |
| 1999 | 8.6% | +137.2% |
| 2000 | 8.5% | -0.9% |
| 2001 | 8.4% | -1.0% |
| 2002 | 8.4% | -0.4% |
| 2003 | 7.0% | -16.9% |
| 2004 | 5.5% | -20.7% |
| 2005 | 8.1% | +47.6% |
| 2006 | 3.1% | -61.7% |
| 2007 | 2.4% | -23.3% |
| 2009 | 2.2% | -10.1% |
| 2010 | 2.4% | +12.0% |
| 2011 | 2.5% | +4.0% |
| 2012 | 2.2% | -10.6% |
| 2014 | 4.4% | +94.5% |
| 2015 | 3.9% | -10.7% |
| 2016 | 4.7% | +21.6% |
| 2017 | 4.7% | -1.5% |
| 2018 | 4.5% | -4.6% |
Guyana compared with similar countries
- Guyana's 4.5% is above the median for high income countries, which is 4.4%, 1.0× the median. (72 countries reporting)
- Guyana's 4.5% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 4.1%, 1.1× the median. (39 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Guyana 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | +137.2% | 3.6% | 8.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 6.9% | 4.3% | 9.4% | 3 |
| 1980s | 7.7% | 7.2% | 8.3% | 2 |
| 1990s | 5.3% | 3.6% | 8.6% | 3 |
| 2000s | 5.9% | 2.2% | 8.5% | 9 |
| 2010s | 3.7% | 2.2% | 4.7% | 8 |
Countries ranked near Guyana
- 81 Bulgaria 4.5% compare
- 82 Saudi Arabia 4.5% compare
- 83 Seychelles 4.5% compare
- 85 Brunei 4.4% compare
- 86 Cook Islands 4.4% compare
- 87 Oman 4.4% compare
More education data for Guyana
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 6,700 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 536 (2010)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 15,835 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 15,230 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 69,542 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 94,786 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 3.93 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1141 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education as a share of gdp in Guyana?
- Government spending on education as a share of gdp in Guyana was 4.5% in 2018, 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 Guyana?
- The highest recorded value was 9.4% in 1979.
- What is the lowest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Guyana?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.2% in 2009.
- How does Guyana rank for government spending on education as a share of gdp?
- Guyana ranks 84th out of 199 countries with data for 2018.
- Is government spending on education as a share of gdp rising or falling in Guyana?
- Over the last ten years it is up 86.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Guyana 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.