Education spending in Jamaica
Jamaica: Education spending was 5.51 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
5.51
Change on year
down 2.5%
World rank
36th
of 199 countries
All-time high
6.37
in 2010
All-time low
3.21
in 1993
Years of data
41
1973–2024
Education spending in Jamaica, 1973–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2024, education spending in Jamaica stood at 5.51.
That represents a change of down 2.5% on the previous year and down 8.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, education spending in Jamaica peaked at 6.37 in 2010 and was at its lowest, 3.21, in 1993.
That places Jamaica 36th out of 199 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 41 years of available data.
Education spending in Jamaica, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1973 | 3.63 | — |
| 1974 | 4.25 | +17.0% |
| 1975 | 5.23 | +23.1% |
| 1976 | 5.86 | +12.0% |
| 1977 | 6.03 | +2.9% |
| 1985 | 5.39 | -10.5% |
| 1986 | 4.6 | -14.6% |
| 1988 | 3.94 | -14.4% |
| 1989 | 5.18 | +31.5% |
| 1990 | 4.78 | -7.8% |
| 1991 | 4.38 | -8.3% |
| 1992 | 3.34 | -23.9% |
| 1993 | 3.21 | -3.7% |
| 1994 | 4.06 | +26.5% |
| 1995 | 3.39 | -16.6% |
| 1996 | 3.68 | +8.5% |
| 1997 | 4.38 | +19.1% |
| 2000 | 4.98 | +13.8% |
| 2001 | 5.38 | +8.0% |
| 2002 | 5.38 | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 4.26 | -20.8% |
| 2004 | 3.91 | -8.1% |
| 2005 | 4.62 | +18.0% |
| 2007 | 5.49 | +18.9% |
| 2008 | 6.19 | +12.8% |
| 2009 | 6.2 | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 6.37 | +2.8% |
| 2011 | 6.27 | -1.6% |
| 2012 | 6.11 | -2.5% |
| 2013 | 6.25 | +2.3% |
| 2014 | 6.02 | -3.8% |
| 2015 | 5.46 | -9.3% |
| 2016 | 5.31 | -2.6% |
| 2017 | 5.26 | -1.0% |
| 2018 | 5.41 | +2.9% |
| 2019 | 5.16 | -4.6% |
| 2020 | 5.38 | +4.2% |
| 2021 | 5.63 | +4.7% |
| 2022 | 5.35 | -4.9% |
| 2023 | 5.65 | +5.6% |
| 2024 | 5.51 | -2.5% |
Jamaica compared with similar countries
- Jamaica's 5.51 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 4.25, 1.3× the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Jamaica's 5.51 is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 4.06, 1.4× the median. (39 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5 | 3.63 | 6.03 | 5 |
| 1980s | 4.78 | 3.94 | 5.39 | 4 |
| 1990s | 3.9 | 3.21 | 4.78 | 8 |
| 2000s | 5.16 | 3.91 | 6.2 | 9 |
| 2010s | 5.76 | 5.16 | 6.37 | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.51 | 5.35 | 5.65 | 5 |
Countries ranked near Jamaica
More education data for Jamaica
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 95.68 (2024)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 95.66 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 11,043 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 4,597 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 52,983 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 51,265 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 177,095 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 211,097 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 8.14 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is education spending in Jamaica?
- Education spending in Jamaica was 5.51 in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest education spending recorded in Jamaica?
- The highest recorded value was 6.37 in 2010.
- What is the lowest education spending recorded in Jamaica?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.21 in 1993.
- How does Jamaica rank for education spending?
- Jamaica ranks 36th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is education spending rising or falling in Jamaica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Jamaica data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Education spending. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 41 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).