Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper female in Zambia
Zambia: Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper female was 19.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Zambia, 1990–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Zambia stood at 19.9%.
That represents a change of down 24.8% on the previous year and up 16.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Zambia peaked at 26.4% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 8.9%, in 1990.
That places Zambia 112th out of 141 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper female in Zambia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 8.9% | — |
| 2015 | 17.1% | +92.6% |
| 2017 | 21.3% | +24.9% |
| 2018 | 14.3% | -33.0% |
| 2023 | 26.4% | +84.9% |
| 2024 | 19.9% | -24.8% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 19.9% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 20.9%, 95% of the median. (30 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 19.9% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 10.4%, 1.9× the median. (30 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 8.9% | 8.9% | 8.9% | 1 |
| 2010s | 17.6% | 14.3% | 21.3% | 3 |
| 2020s | 23.2% | 19.9% | 26.4% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
More education data for Zambia
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 86.21 (2017)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 96.49 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 42,585 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 169,961 (2013)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.39 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.49 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.55 % change on previous year (2017)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.2106 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Zambia?
- Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Zambia was 19.9% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 26.4% in 2023.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.9% in 1990.
- How does Zambia rank for educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or?
- Zambia ranks 112th out of 141 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Zambia data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or higher, population 25+ years, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 6 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release