Government expenditure on lower secondary education as a percentage in South Africa
South Africa: Government expenditure on lower secondary education as a percentage was 0.8% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Government expenditure on lower secondary education as a percentage in South Africa, 2016–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, government expenditure on lower secondary education as a percentage in South Africa stood at 0.8%.
That represents a change of down 0.1% on the previous year and up 10.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government expenditure on lower secondary education as a percentage in South Africa peaked at 0.8% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 0.7%, in 2019.
South Africa ranks 62nd of 116 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
Government expenditure on lower secondary education as a percentage in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.7% | — |
| 2017 | 0.7% | -1.0% |
| 2018 | 0.7% | -0.0% |
| 2019 | 0.7% | -0.6% |
| 2020 | 0.8% | +16.2% |
| 2021 | 0.8% | +3.9% |
| 2022 | 0.8% | -5.3% |
| 2023 | 0.8% | -1.5% |
| 2024 | 0.8% | -0.1% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 0.8% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.8%, 97% of the median. (33 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 0.8% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.6%, 1.3× the median. (26 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.7% | 4 |
| 2020s | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 181,739 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 339,638 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 410,708 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 407,696 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 5.50 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 7.52 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.44 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.119 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government expenditure on lower secondary education as a percentage in South Africa?
- Government expenditure on lower secondary education as a percentage in South Africa was 0.8% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest government expenditure on lower secondary education as a percentage recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 0.8% in 2021.
- What is the lowest government expenditure on lower secondary education as a percentage recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.7% in 2019.
- How does South Africa rank for government expenditure on lower secondary education as a percentage?
- South Africa ranks 62nd out of 116 countries with data for 2024.
- Is government expenditure on lower secondary education as a percentage rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.7%. 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 Government expenditure on lower secondary education as a percentage of GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 9 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release