Education spending in Malawi
Malawi: Education spending was 2.75 in 2022. ▲ Rising
Latest (2022)
2.75
World rank
161st
of 199 countries
All-time high
3.85
in 2015
All-time low
2.18
in 1988
Years of data
21
1986–2022
Education spending in Malawi, 1986–2022
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2022, education spending in Malawi stood at 2.75.
The figure is up 8.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, education spending in Malawi peaked at 3.85 in 2015 and was at its lowest, 2.18, in 1988.
That places Malawi 161st out of 199 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 21 years of available data.
Education spending in Malawi, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | 2.2 | — |
| 1987 | 2.42 | +10.2% |
| 1988 | 2.18 | -10.0% |
| 1989 | 2.18 | +0.2% |
| 1990 | 2.25 | +3.0% |
| 1995 | 2.75 | +22.6% |
| 1996 | 3.7 | +34.2% |
| 1999 | 3.43 | -7.2% |
| 2000 | 3.61 | +5.1% |
| 2001 | 3.1 | -14.1% |
| 2003 | 2.21 | -28.7% |
| 2010 | 2.43 | +10.1% |
| 2011 | 2.85 | +17.3% |
| 2012 | 2.53 | -11.4% |
| 2013 | 3.72 | +47.2% |
| 2014 | 3.33 | -10.6% |
| 2015 | 3.85 | +15.9% |
| 2016 | 3.28 | -14.8% |
| 2017 | 2.77 | -15.6% |
| 2018 | 3.32 | +20.0% |
| 2022 | 2.75 | -17.3% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 2.75 is below the median for low income countries, which is 2.81, 98% of the median. (23 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 2.75 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.2, 86% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 2.25 | 2.18 | 2.42 | 4 |
| 1990s | 3.03 | 2.25 | 3.7 | 4 |
| 2000s | 2.97 | 2.21 | 3.61 | 3 |
| 2010s | 3.12 | 2.43 | 3.85 | 9 |
| 2020s | 2.75 | 2.75 | 2.75 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More education data for Malawi
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 98.49 (2007)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 99.57 (2023)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 14,528 (2019)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 1.25 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.16 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.75 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.7 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0004 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.2193 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is education spending in Malawi?
- Education spending in Malawi was 2.75 in 2022, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest education spending recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 3.85 in 2015.
- What is the lowest education spending recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.18 in 1988.
- How does Malawi rank for education spending?
- Malawi ranks 161st out of 199 countries with data for 2022.
- Is education spending rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malawi 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 — 21 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).