Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Senegal
Senegal: Government spending on education as a share of GDP was 6.2% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Senegal, 1998–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for government spending on education as a share of gdp in Senegal is 6.2%, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is up 3.5% on the previous year and up 8.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Senegal peaked at 6.2% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 0.5%, in 2010.
That places Senegal 26th out of 199 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Senegal, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 2.5% | — |
| 1999 | 2.5% | -0.6% |
| 2000 | 2.5% | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 2.5% | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 2.6% | +5.0% |
| 2003 | 2.8% | +6.0% |
| 2004 | 3.1% | +11.9% |
| 2005 | 4.1% | +32.1% |
| 2006 | 3.8% | -6.0% |
| 2008 | 4.0% | +5.3% |
| 2009 | 4.9% | +22.2% |
| 2010 | 0.5% | -88.9% |
| 2011 | 4.9% | +800.0% |
| 2012 | 4.8% | -2.6% |
| 2013 | 5.7% | +19.0% |
| 2014 | 5.7% | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 5.5% | -4.8% |
| 2016 | 5.1% | -6.3% |
| 2017 | 4.7% | -7.3% |
| 2018 | 5.1% | +7.8% |
| 2019 | 5.0% | -1.5% |
| 2020 | 5.7% | +12.9% |
| 2021 | 5.6% | -1.3% |
| 2022 | 6.0% | +6.1% |
| 2023 | 6.2% | +3.5% |
Senegal compared with similar countries
- Senegal's 6.2% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 4.0%, 1.5× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Senegal's 6.2% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.2%, 1.9× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Senegal 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | +800.0% | 0.5% | 4.9% |
| 2010 | -88.9% | 4.9% | 0.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 2.5% | 2.5% | 2.5% | 2 |
| 2000s | 3.4% | 2.5% | 4.9% | 9 |
| 2010s | 4.7% | 0.5% | 5.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.9% | 5.6% | 6.2% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Senegal
More education data for Senegal
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 55,703 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 64,252 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 162,919 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 181,550 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.28 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.35 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.4401 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.127 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education as a share of gdp in Senegal?
- Government spending on education as a share of gdp in Senegal was 6.2% 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 Senegal?
- The highest recorded value was 6.2% in 2023.
- What is the lowest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Senegal?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5% in 2010.
- How does Senegal rank for government spending on education as a share of gdp?
- Senegal ranks 26th out of 199 countries with data for 2023.
- Is government spending on education as a share of gdp rising or falling in Senegal?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Senegal 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.