Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in South Africa
South Africa: Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or was 0.8239 LPIA in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in South Africa, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in LPIA.
Analysis
The most recent figure for educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in South Africa is 0.8239 LPIA, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 24 years on record.
That represents a change of up 7.9% on the previous year and up 19.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in South Africa peaked at 0.8239 LPIA in 2024 and was at its lowest, 0.1999 LPIA, in 1970.
That places South Africa 45th out of 95 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in South Africa, year by year
| Year | LPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 0.1999 LPIA | — |
| 2001 | 0.4708 LPIA | +135.5% |
| 2002 | 0.5221 LPIA | +10.9% |
| 2003 | 0.5362 LPIA | +2.7% |
| 2004 | 0.5567 LPIA | +3.8% |
| 2005 | 0.5718 LPIA | +2.7% |
| 2006 | 0.5788 LPIA | +1.2% |
| 2007 | 0.6042 LPIA | +4.4% |
| 2008 | 0.5849 LPIA | -3.2% |
| 2009 | 0.627 LPIA | +7.2% |
| 2010 | 0.6356 LPIA | +1.4% |
| 2011 | 0.657 LPIA | +3.4% |
| 2012 | 0.675 LPIA | +2.7% |
| 2014 | 0.6892 LPIA | +2.1% |
| 2015 | 0.6988 LPIA | +1.4% |
| 2016 | 0.6891 LPIA | -1.4% |
| 2017 | 0.678 LPIA | -1.6% |
| 2018 | 0.7067 LPIA | +4.2% |
| 2019 | 0.7211 LPIA | +2.0% |
| 2020 | 0.7656 LPIA | +6.2% |
| 2021 | 0.7983 LPIA | +4.3% |
| 2022 | 0.7779 LPIA | -2.6% |
| 2023 | 0.7638 LPIA | -1.8% |
| 2024 | 0.8239 LPIA | +7.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.1999 LPIA | 0.1999 LPIA | 0.1999 LPIA | 1 |
| 2000s | 0.5614 LPIA | 0.4708 LPIA | 0.627 LPIA | 9 |
| 2010s | 0.6834 LPIA | 0.6356 LPIA | 0.7211 LPIA | 9 |
| 2020s | 0.7859 LPIA | 0.7638 LPIA | 0.8239 LPIA | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Enrolment in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 5.50 million (2023)
- Enrolment in secondary education, both sexes (number), annual growth 2.22 % change on previous year (2023)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 287,310 (2023)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth rate 13.45 % change on previous year (2015)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 2.82 million (2023)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 1.53 % change on previous year (2023)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 2.68 million (2023)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 2.97 % change on previous year (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 818,404 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual 3.28 % change on previous year (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in South Africa?
- Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in South Africa was 0.8239 LPIA in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 0.8239 LPIA in 2024.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.1999 LPIA in 1970.
- How does South Africa rank for educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or?
- South Africa ranks 45th out of 95 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 19.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or higher, population 25+ years, female, adjusted location parity index (LPIA). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release