Educational attainment rate, completed post-secondary non-tertiary in South Africa
South Africa: Educational attainment rate, completed post-secondary non-tertiary was 0.6264 LPIA in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed post-secondary non-tertiary in South Africa, 2001–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in LPIA.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 0.6264 LPIA for educational attainment rate, completed post-secondary non-tertiary in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.5% on the previous year and up 107.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed post-secondary non-tertiary in South Africa peaked at 0.6362 LPIA in 2021 and was at its lowest, 0.258 LPIA, in 2017.
South Africa ranks 27th of 70 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 21 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed post-secondary non-tertiary in South Africa, year by year
| Year | LPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 0.3406 LPIA | — |
| 2002 | 0.3317 LPIA | -2.6% |
| 2003 | 0.2873 LPIA | -13.4% |
| 2004 | 0.2893 LPIA | +0.7% |
| 2005 | 0.3342 LPIA | +15.5% |
| 2006 | 0.3412 LPIA | +2.1% |
| 2007 | 0.3194 LPIA | -6.4% |
| 2008 | 0.332 LPIA | +4.0% |
| 2009 | 0.2766 LPIA | -16.7% |
| 2010 | 0.3033 LPIA | +9.6% |
| 2011 | 0.2726 LPIA | -10.1% |
| 2012 | 0.2666 LPIA | -2.2% |
| 2013 | 0.3217 LPIA | +20.7% |
| 2014 | 0.3024 LPIA | -6.0% |
| 2015 | 0.3148 LPIA | +4.1% |
| 2016 | 0.4236 LPIA | +34.6% |
| 2017 | 0.258 LPIA | -39.1% |
| 2018 | 0.4298 LPIA | +66.6% |
| 2019 | 0.4234 LPIA | -1.5% |
| 2021 | 0.6362 LPIA | +50.3% |
| 2024 | 0.6264 LPIA | -1.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 0.3169 LPIA | 0.2766 LPIA | 0.3412 LPIA | 9 |
| 2010s | 0.3316 LPIA | 0.258 LPIA | 0.4298 LPIA | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.6313 LPIA | 0.6264 LPIA | 0.6362 LPIA | 2 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years), annual 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of secondary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), gaps filled 2,023 tertiary education (2023)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), annual growth 0.0495 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 287,310 (2023)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 4 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 67.4% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 25.7% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed post-secondary non-tertiary in South Africa?
- Educational attainment rate, completed post-secondary non-tertiary in South Africa was 0.6264 LPIA in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed post-secondary non-tertiary recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 0.6362 LPIA in 2021.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed post-secondary non-tertiary recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.258 LPIA in 2017.
- How does South Africa rank for educational attainment rate, completed post-secondary non-tertiary?
- South Africa ranks 27th out of 70 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed post-secondary non-tertiary rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 107.1%. 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 post-secondary non-tertiary education or higher, population 25+ years, male, adjusted location parity index (LPIA). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 21 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release