Educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher in South Africa
South Africa: Educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher was 0.863 LPIA in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher in South Africa, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in LPIA.
Analysis
The most recent figure for educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher in South Africa is 0.863 LPIA, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is up 3.8% on the previous year and up 15.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher in South Africa peaked at 0.863 LPIA in 2024 and was at its lowest, 0.2686 LPIA, in 1970.
That places South Africa 64th out of 100 countries with data for 2024, putting it 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 primary education or higher in South Africa, year by year
| Year | LPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 0.2686 LPIA | — |
| 2001 | 0.5357 LPIA | +99.4% |
| 2002 | 0.6005 LPIA | +12.1% |
| 2003 | 0.6122 LPIA | +1.9% |
| 2004 | 0.6236 LPIA | +1.9% |
| 2005 | 0.6391 LPIA | +2.5% |
| 2006 | 0.6434 LPIA | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 0.6697 LPIA | +4.1% |
| 2008 | 0.648 LPIA | -3.2% |
| 2009 | 0.7005 LPIA | +8.1% |
| 2010 | 0.7052 LPIA | +0.7% |
| 2011 | 0.7137 LPIA | +1.2% |
| 2012 | 0.7449 LPIA | +4.4% |
| 2013 | 0.7286 LPIA | -2.2% |
| 2014 | 0.7455 LPIA | +2.3% |
| 2015 | 0.7589 LPIA | +1.8% |
| 2016 | 0.7838 LPIA | +3.3% |
| 2017 | 0.8278 LPIA | +5.6% |
| 2018 | 0.79 LPIA | -4.6% |
| 2019 | 0.8033 LPIA | +1.7% |
| 2020 | 0.8446 LPIA | +5.2% |
| 2021 | 0.8451 LPIA | +0.1% |
| 2022 | 0.8364 LPIA | -1.0% |
| 2023 | 0.8317 LPIA | -0.6% |
| 2024 | 0.863 LPIA | +3.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.2686 LPIA | 0.2686 LPIA | 0.2686 LPIA | 1 |
| 2000s | 0.6303 LPIA | 0.5357 LPIA | 0.7005 LPIA | 9 |
| 2010s | 0.7602 LPIA | 0.7052 LPIA | 0.8278 LPIA | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.8442 LPIA | 0.8317 LPIA | 0.863 LPIA | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 3.65 million (2023)
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), annual growth rate -1.31 % change on previous year (2023)
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), per capita 0.0578 units per person (2023)
- Enrolment in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 3.87 million (2023)
- Enrolment in primary education, male (number), annual growth rate -1.55 % change on previous year (2023)
- Enrolment in primary education, male (number), per capita 0.0612 units per person (2023)
- 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)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher in South Africa?
- Educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher in South Africa was 0.863 LPIA in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 0.863 LPIA in 2024.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.2686 LPIA in 1970.
- How does South Africa rank for educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher?
- South Africa ranks 64th out of 100 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.8%. 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 primary education or higher, population 25+ years, adjusted location parity index (LPIA). 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