Gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education in Colombia
Colombia: Gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education was 93.2% in 2022. ◆ Volatile
Gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education in Colombia, 1820–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Colombia recorded 93.2% for gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education in 2022.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.2% on the previous year and down 5.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education in Colombia peaked at 99.4% in 2004 and was at its lowest, 0.9%, in 1820.
Colombia ranks 115th of 190 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education in Colombia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1820 | 0.9% | — |
| 1825 | 1.1% | +24.7% |
| 1830 | 1.4% | +24.3% |
| 1835 | 1.7% | +23.9% |
| 1840 | 3.3% | +94.2% |
| 1845 | 3.1% | -5.1% |
| 1850 | 3.3% | +5.1% |
| 1855 | 4.8% | +45.9% |
| 1860 | 6.3% | +31.5% |
| 1865 | 7.9% | +23.9% |
| 1870 | 9.4% | +19.3% |
| 1875 | 10.9% | +16.2% |
| 1880 | 12.7% | +16.3% |
| 1885 | 10.8% | -14.9% |
| 1890 | 12.3% | +14.2% |
| 1895 | 13.9% | +12.4% |
| 1900 | 19.6% | +41.8% |
| 1905 | 25.4% | +29.5% |
| 1910 | 31.2% | +22.8% |
| 1915 | 37.0% | +18.5% |
| 1920 | 37.8% | +2.2% |
| 1925 | 38.7% | +2.2% |
| 1930 | 39.5% | +2.1% |
| 1935 | 40.3% | +2.1% |
| 1940 | 41.1% | +2.0% |
| 1945 | 41.9% | +2.0% |
| 1950 | 42.8% | +2.0% |
| 1955 | 55.2% | +29.2% |
| 1960 | 59.0% | +6.8% |
| 1965 | 66.0% | +11.9% |
| 1970 | 80.7% | +22.2% |
| 1975 | 88.0% | +9.1% |
| 1980 | 95.3% | +8.3% |
| 2000 | 96.5% | +1.3% |
| 2001 | 93.4% | -3.3% |
| 2002 | 93.2% | -0.2% |
| 2004 | 99.4% | +6.7% |
| 2012 | 98.3% | -1.1% |
| 2015 | 97.0% | -1.3% |
| 2016 | 95.4% | -1.7% |
| 2017 | 96.5% | +1.1% |
| 2018 | 95.8% | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 95.6% | -0.2% |
| 2020 | 94.5% | -1.1% |
| 2021 | 93.4% | -1.1% |
| 2022 | 93.2% | -0.2% |
Colombia compared with similar countries
- Colombia's 93.2% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 94.1%, 99% of the median. (52 countries reporting)
- Colombia's 93.2% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 93.2%, 1.0× the median. (35 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education in Colombia 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1840 | +94.2% | 1.7% | 3.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1820s | 1.0% | 0.9% | 1.1% | 2 |
| 1830s | 1.5% | 1.4% | 1.7% | 2 |
| 1840s | 3.2% | 3.1% | 3.3% | 2 |
| 1850s | 4.1% | 3.3% | 4.8% | 2 |
| 1860s | 7.1% | 6.3% | 7.9% | 2 |
| 1870s | 10.2% | 9.4% | 10.9% | 2 |
| 1880s | 11.7% | 10.8% | 12.7% | 2 |
| 1890s | 13.1% | 12.3% | 13.9% | 2 |
| 1900s | 22.5% | 19.6% | 25.4% | 2 |
| 1910s | 34.1% | 31.2% | 37.0% | 2 |
| 1920s | 38.2% | 37.8% | 38.7% | 2 |
| 1930s | 39.9% | 39.5% | 40.3% | 2 |
| 1940s | 41.5% | 41.1% | 41.9% | 2 |
| 1950s | 49.0% | 42.8% | 55.2% | 2 |
| 1960s | 62.5% | 59.0% | 66.0% | 2 |
| 1970s | 84.3% | 80.7% | 88.0% | 2 |
| 1980s | 95.3% | 95.3% | 95.3% | 1 |
| 2000s | 95.6% | 93.2% | 99.4% | 4 |
| 2010s | 96.4% | 95.4% | 98.3% | 6 |
| 2020s | 93.7% | 93.2% | 94.5% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Colombia
More education data for Colombia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 190,940 (2022)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 234,939 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 963,182 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 937,684 (2022)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.85 million (2022)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.14 million (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.2 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.08 units per person (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education in Colombia?
- Gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education in Colombia was 93.2% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education recorded in Colombia?
- The highest recorded value was 99.4% in 2004.
- What is the lowest gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education recorded in Colombia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.9% in 1820.
- How does Colombia rank for gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education?
- Colombia ranks 115th out of 190 countries with data for 2022.
- Is gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education rising or falling in Colombia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Colombia data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Gender gap in primary, secondary and tertiary education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 46 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of girls of primary school age (typically 6–11 years) who are enrolled in primary education.