Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper both in Panama
Panama: Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper both was 49.4% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Panama, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Panama stood at 49.4%.
The figure is down 6.1% on the previous year and up 7.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Panama peaked at 54.3% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 12.6%, in 1970.
Panama ranks 83rd of 142 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 29 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper both in Panama, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 12.6% | — |
| 1980 | 19.8% | +56.8% |
| 1990 | 30.8% | +56.1% |
| 1997 | 39.1% | +26.7% |
| 2000 | 33.7% | -13.9% |
| 2001 | 33.9% | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 35.4% | +4.4% |
| 2003 | 36.1% | +2.0% |
| 2004 | 37.0% | +2.5% |
| 2005 | 37.5% | +1.4% |
| 2006 | 38.0% | +1.3% |
| 2007 | 39.2% | +3.2% |
| 2008 | 40.1% | +2.3% |
| 2009 | 41.0% | +2.2% |
| 2010 | 43.0% | +4.9% |
| 2011 | 43.3% | +0.7% |
| 2012 | 45.3% | +4.7% |
| 2013 | 45.1% | -0.5% |
| 2014 | 46.1% | +2.2% |
| 2015 | 46.8% | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 47.8% | +2.1% |
| 2017 | 47.2% | -1.3% |
| 2018 | 47.2% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 54.3% | +15.1% |
| 2020 | 54.1% | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 51.4% | -5.1% |
| 2022 | 51.3% | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 52.6% | +2.5% |
| 2024 | 49.4% | -6.1% |
Panama compared with similar countries
- Panama's 49.4% is below the median for high income countries, which is 79.5%, 62% of the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Panama's 49.4% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 50.3%, 98% of the median. (24 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper both in Panama changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | +56.8% | 12.6% | 19.8% |
| 1990 | +56.1% | 19.8% | 30.8% |
| 1997 | +26.7% | 30.8% | 39.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 12.6% | 12.6% | 12.6% | 1 |
| 1980s | 19.8% | 19.8% | 19.8% | 1 |
| 1990s | 35.0% | 30.8% | 39.1% | 2 |
| 2000s | 37.2% | 33.7% | 41.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 46.6% | 43.0% | 54.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 51.8% | 49.4% | 54.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Panama
- 80 Saint Lucia 51.3% compare
- 81 Mauritius 51.1% compare
- 82 Dominican Republic 49.4% compare
- 84 Portugal 48.6% compare
- 85 Nigeria 48.1% compare
- 86 South Africa 48.0% compare
More education data for Panama
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 92.75 (2024)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 92.3 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 23,777 (2017)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 10,042 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 47,857 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 46,052 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 311,983 (2017)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 451,308 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.02 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Panama?
- Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Panama was 49.4% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in Panama?
- The highest recorded value was 54.3% in 2019.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in Panama?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.6% in 1970.
- How does Panama rank for educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or?
- Panama ranks 83rd out of 142 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or rising or falling in Panama?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Panama 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, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 29 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release