Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary … lower both in Malawi
Malawi: Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary … lower both was 18.8% in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2020)
18.8%
Change on year
down 17.7%
World rank
124th
of 135 countries
All-time high
22.8%
in 2017
All-time low
2.7%
in 1977
Years of data
8
1977–2020
Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Malawi, 1977–2020
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Malawi recorded 18.8% for educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in 2020.
That represents a change of down 17.7% on the previous year and down 2.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Malawi peaked at 22.8% in 2017 and was at its lowest, 2.7%, in 1977.
Malawi ranks 124th of 135 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary … lower both in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1977 | 2.7% | — |
| 1987 | 5.2% | +94.6% |
| 1998 | 8.6% | +64.6% |
| 2005 | 14.2% | +66.1% |
| 2011 | 19.3% | +35.6% |
| 2015 | 19.7% | +1.9% |
| 2017 | 22.8% | +16.2% |
| 2020 | 18.8% | -17.7% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 18.8% is above the median for low income countries, which is 18.4%, 1.0× the median. (14 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 18.8% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 26.7%, 70% of the median. (28 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2.7% | 2.7% | 2.7% | 1 |
| 1980s | 5.2% | 5.2% | 5.2% | 1 |
| 1990s | 8.6% | 8.6% | 8.6% | 1 |
| 2000s | 14.2% | 14.2% | 14.2% | 1 |
| 2010s | 20.6% | 19.3% | 22.8% | 3 |
| 2020s | 18.8% | 18.8% | 18.8% | 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 educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Malawi?
- Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Malawi was 18.8% in 2020, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 22.8% in 2017.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.7% in 1977.
- How does Malawi rank for educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or?
- Malawi ranks 124th out of 135 countries with data for 2020.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Malawi 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, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 8 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release