Share of primary school teachers who are women in Tonga
Tonga: Share of primary school teachers who are women was 78.2% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of primary school teachers who are women in Tonga, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of primary school teachers who are women in Tonga is 78.2%, measured in 2024.
The figure is down 4.4% on the previous year and up 8.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of primary school teachers who are women in Tonga peaked at 81.9% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 43.5%, in 1971.
That places Tonga 99th out of 212 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 44 years of available data.
Share of primary school teachers who are women in Tonga, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 43.8% | — |
| 1971 | 43.5% | -0.6% |
| 1972 | 46.1% | +5.9% |
| 1973 | 47.3% | +2.5% |
| 1974 | 45.5% | -3.7% |
| 1975 | 53.5% | +17.5% |
| 1978 | 54.1% | +1.2% |
| 1979 | 57.1% | +5.5% |
| 1981 | 59.3% | +3.8% |
| 1982 | 61.2% | +3.2% |
| 1983 | 60.2% | -1.5% |
| 1984 | 61.0% | +1.3% |
| 1985 | 61.8% | +1.4% |
| 1986 | 64.9% | +5.0% |
| 1990 | 68.9% | +6.2% |
| 1991 | 67.4% | -2.3% |
| 1992 | 64.2% | -4.8% |
| 1993 | 65.6% | +2.3% |
| 1994 | 66.9% | +1.9% |
| 1995 | 69.0% | +3.1% |
| 1996 | 68.2% | -1.2% |
| 1997 | 70.1% | +2.8% |
| 1998 | 69.9% | -0.2% |
| 1999 | 67.2% | -3.9% |
| 2000 | 68.8% | +2.4% |
| 2001 | 68.0% | -1.1% |
| 2002 | 69.9% | +2.7% |
| 2003 | 62.0% | -11.2% |
| 2004 | 63.0% | +1.6% |
| 2007 | 70.8% | +12.4% |
| 2008 | 69.8% | -1.5% |
| 2009 | 69.6% | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 71.5% | +2.8% |
| 2011 | 73.2% | +2.4% |
| 2013 | 70.4% | -3.8% |
| 2014 | 72.3% | +2.6% |
| 2015 | 72.4% | +0.1% |
| 2018 | 75.7% | +4.6% |
| 2019 | 74.1% | -2.0% |
| 2020 | 78.3% | +5.6% |
| 2021 | 78.1% | -0.2% |
| 2022 | 78.1% | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 81.9% | +4.8% |
| 2024 | 78.2% | -4.4% |
Tonga compared with similar countries
- Tonga's 78.2% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 79.4%, 98% of the median. (57 countries reporting)
- Tonga's 78.2% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 76.1%, 1.0× the median. (33 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 48.9% | 43.5% | 57.1% | 8 |
| 1980s | 61.4% | 59.3% | 64.9% | 6 |
| 1990s | 67.7% | 64.2% | 70.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 67.7% | 62.0% | 70.8% | 8 |
| 2010s | 72.8% | 70.4% | 75.7% | 7 |
| 2020s | 78.9% | 78.1% | 81.9% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Tonga
More education data for Tonga
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 1,086 (2015)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 20 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1,228 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1,164 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 16,132 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 15,644 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -2.92 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1502 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of primary school teachers who are women in Tonga?
- Share of primary school teachers who are women in Tonga was 78.2% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of primary school teachers who are women recorded in Tonga?
- The highest recorded value was 81.9% in 2023.
- What is the lowest share of primary school teachers who are women recorded in Tonga?
- The lowest recorded value was 43.5% in 1971.
- How does Tonga rank for share of primary school teachers who are women?
- Tonga ranks 99th out of 212 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of primary school teachers who are women rising or falling in Tonga?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Tonga data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of primary school teachers who are women. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Percentage of female teachers among all teachers at the primary education level during a given school year.