Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in South Africa
South Africa: Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or was 90.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in South Africa, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in South Africa stood at 90.0%. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 8.4% on the previous year and up 7.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in South Africa peaked at 90.0% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 50.9%, in 1970.
South Africa ranks 35th of 97 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 50.9% | — |
| 2001 | 67.5% | +32.6% |
| 2002 | 73.5% | +8.9% |
| 2003 | 75.3% | +2.5% |
| 2004 | 76.2% | +1.1% |
| 2005 | 74.0% | -2.8% |
| 2006 | 74.7% | +1.0% |
| 2007 | 75.7% | +1.3% |
| 2008 | 76.8% | +1.5% |
| 2009 | 80.3% | +4.6% |
| 2010 | 80.3% | -0.0% |
| 2011 | 81.5% | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 82.7% | +1.4% |
| 2013 | 75.8% | -8.3% |
| 2014 | 83.6% | +10.2% |
| 2015 | 83.7% | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 77.5% | -7.4% |
| 2017 | 79.8% | +3.0% |
| 2018 | 79.3% | -0.6% |
| 2019 | 79.8% | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 84.7% | +6.1% |
| 2021 | 89.0% | +5.1% |
| 2022 | 81.1% | -8.9% |
| 2023 | 83.0% | +2.3% |
| 2024 | 90.0% | +8.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 50.9% | 50.9% | 50.9% | 1 |
| 2000s | 74.9% | 67.5% | 80.3% | 9 |
| 2010s | 80.4% | 75.8% | 83.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 85.6% | 81.1% | 90.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 32 Malta 92.3% compare
- 33 Poland 91.1% compare
- 34 France 90.9% compare
- 36 Netherlands 89.7% compare
- 37 Luxembourg 89.6% compare
- 38 Republic of Korea 88.5% compare
More education data for South Africa
- 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)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 1.19 million (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) -2.55 % change on previous year (2023)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 225,583 (2023)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 61,727 (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 748,573 (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) -1.43 % 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 90.0% 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 90.0% in 2024.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 50.9% in 1970.
- How does South Africa rank for educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or?
- South Africa ranks 35th out of 97 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 7.6%. 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, urban, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release