Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ghana
Ghana: Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government was 13.2% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ghana, 1980–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in UIS calculation.
Analysis
Ghana recorded 13.2% for expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in 2022.
The figure is up 8.3% on the previous year and down 50.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ghana peaked at 34.3% in 1986 and was at its lowest, 7.6%, in 1980.
That places Ghana 87th out of 197 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.
Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ghana, year by year
| Year | UIS calculation | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 7.6% | — |
| 1981 | 7.7% | +1.4% |
| 1982 | 13.8% | +78.5% |
| 1986 | 34.3% | +148.0% |
| 1987 | 24.7% | -28.1% |
| 1988 | 23.9% | -3.0% |
| 1999 | 14.9% | -37.8% |
| 2001 | 15.7% | +5.7% |
| 2004 | 22.4% | +42.2% |
| 2005 | 23.4% | +4.7% |
| 2006 | 24.2% | +3.1% |
| 2007 | 22.3% | -7.6% |
| 2008 | 24.0% | +7.7% |
| 2009 | 22.5% | -6.4% |
| 2010 | 20.7% | -8.0% |
| 2011 | 30.6% | +48.0% |
| 2012 | 26.6% | -13.2% |
| 2013 | 21.2% | -20.2% |
| 2014 | 21.0% | -1.1% |
| 2015 | 23.8% | +13.5% |
| 2016 | 22.1% | -7.2% |
| 2017 | 20.1% | -9.0% |
| 2018 | 18.6% | -7.5% |
| 2019 | 14.3% | -23.3% |
| 2020 | 13.6% | -4.5% |
| 2021 | 12.2% | -10.7% |
| 2022 | 13.2% | +8.3% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 13.2% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 14.3%, 92% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 13.2% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 14.2%, 93% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ghana 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | +148.0% | 13.8% | 34.3% |
| 1982 | +78.5% | 7.7% | 13.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 18.7% | 7.6% | 34.3% | 6 |
| 1990s | 14.9% | 14.9% | 14.9% | 1 |
| 2000s | 22.1% | 15.7% | 24.2% | 7 |
| 2010s | 21.9% | 14.3% | 30.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.0% | 12.2% | 13.6% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
- 84 Cape Verde 13.4% compare
- 85 Tanzania, United Republic of 13.4% compare
- 86 Argentina 13.2% compare
- 88 Haiti 13.2% compare
- 89 Colombia 13.2% compare
- 90 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 13.1% compare
More education data for Ghana
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 174,414 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 39,902 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 949,095 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 913,117 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.33 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.98 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.6567 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1448 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ghana?
- Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ghana was 13.2% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest expenditure on education as a percentage of total government recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 34.3% in 1986.
- What is the lowest expenditure on education as a percentage of total government recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.6% in 1980.
- How does Ghana rank for expenditure on education as a percentage of total government?
- Ghana ranks 87th out of 197 countries with data for 2022.
- Is expenditure on education as a percentage of total government rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is down 50.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government expenditure (%) (UIS calculation). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release