Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Somalia
Somalia: Government spending on education as a share of GDP was 0.0% in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Somalia, 1972–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Somalia recorded 0.0% for government spending on education as a share of gdp in 2023.
The figure is up 12.8% on the previous year and up 103.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Somalia peaked at 1.3% in 1973 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 2018.
That places Somalia 199th out of 199 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Somalia, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 1.1% | — |
| 1973 | 1.3% | +21.4% |
| 2018 | 0.0% | -100.0% |
| 2019 | 0.0% | +43.0% |
| 2020 | 0.0% | +6.8% |
| 2021 | 0.0% | +10.3% |
| 2022 | 0.0% | +6.9% |
| 2023 | 0.0% | +12.8% |
Somalia compared with similar countries
- Somalia's 0.0% is below the median for low income countries, which is 2.8%, 0% of the median. (23 countries reporting)
- Somalia's 0.0% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.2%, 0% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.3% | 2 |
| 2010s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2 |
| 2020s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Somalia
More education data for Somalia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 4,504 (2007)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 676 (1986)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 882 (1986)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 115,828 (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 464,607 (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -7.59 % change on previous year (1986)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0253 units per person (2023)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education as a share of gdp in Somalia?
- Government spending on education as a share of gdp in Somalia was 0.0% 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 Somalia?
- The highest recorded value was 1.3% in 1973.
- What is the lowest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Somalia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 2018.
- How does Somalia rank for government spending on education as a share of gdp?
- Somalia ranks 199th out of 199 countries with data for 2023.
- Is government spending on education as a share of gdp rising or falling in Somalia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 103.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Somalia 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.