Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in South Africa
South Africa: Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or was 54.2% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in South Africa, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 54.2% for educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in 2024.
The figure is down 0.3% on the previous year and up 8.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in South Africa peaked at 57.1% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 16.5%, in 1970.
South Africa ranks 71st of 108 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 18 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 16.5% | — |
| 2001 | 36.3% | +120.6% |
| 2008 | 44.8% | +23.3% |
| 2009 | 45.9% | +2.5% |
| 2010 | 47.2% | +2.9% |
| 2011 | 47.7% | +1.0% |
| 2013 | 49.1% | +2.9% |
| 2014 | 49.8% | +1.5% |
| 2015 | 48.7% | -2.3% |
| 2016 | 48.7% | +0.1% |
| 2017 | 49.8% | +2.3% |
| 2018 | 50.6% | +1.6% |
| 2019 | 51.2% | +1.2% |
| 2020 | 56.8% | +10.9% |
| 2021 | 57.1% | +0.5% |
| 2022 | 52.3% | -8.3% |
| 2023 | 54.4% | +3.9% |
| 2024 | 54.2% | -0.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 16.5% | 16.5% | 16.5% | 1 |
| 2000s | 42.3% | 36.3% | 45.9% | 3 |
| 2010s | 49.2% | 47.2% | 51.2% | 9 |
| 2020s | 55.0% | 52.3% | 57.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
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 upper secondary education or in South Africa?
- Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in South Africa was 54.2% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 57.1% in 2021.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 16.5% in 1970.
- How does South Africa rank for educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or?
- South Africa ranks 71st out of 108 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.8%. 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 upper secondary education or higher, population 25+ years, urban, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 18 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release