Government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of GDP in Kenya
Kenya: Government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of GDP was 1.7% in 2015. ▼ Falling
Government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of GDP in Kenya, 1971–2015
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2015, government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp in Kenya stood at 1.7%.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.3% on the previous year and down 59.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp in Kenya peaked at 4.2% in 2004 and was at its lowest, 1.7%, in 2012.
That places Kenya 42nd out of 162 countries with data for 2015, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 29 years of available data.
Government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of GDP in Kenya, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 1.8% | — |
| 1972 | 2.0% | +10.7% |
| 1973 | 2.1% | +7.0% |
| 1974 | 2.8% | +32.6% |
| 1975 | 3.2% | +13.3% |
| 1976 | 3.6% | +13.9% |
| 1977 | 3.1% | -15.2% |
| 1980 | 3.2% | +4.2% |
| 1981 | 3.6% | +12.5% |
| 1982 | 3.5% | -2.7% |
| 1983 | 3.3% | -7.2% |
| 1984 | 2.9% | -12.9% |
| 1985 | 2.9% | +3.5% |
| 1986 | 3.5% | +17.2% |
| 1988 | 3.9% | +13.3% |
| 1989 | 3.4% | -12.1% |
| 1992 | 3.1% | -9.1% |
| 1993 | 3.0% | -4.1% |
| 1994 | 3.3% | +10.4% |
| 2000 | 3.5% | +6.6% |
| 2001 | 3.4% | -2.6% |
| 2003 | 4.1% | +18.8% |
| 2004 | 4.2% | +3.3% |
| 2006 | 3.8% | -9.7% |
| 2011 | 1.8% | -52.4% |
| 2012 | 1.7% | -7.1% |
| 2013 | 1.7% | +3.7% |
| 2014 | 1.7% | -2.6% |
| 2015 | 1.7% | +1.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2.7% | 1.8% | 3.6% | 7 |
| 1980s | 3.4% | 2.9% | 3.9% | 9 |
| 1990s | 3.1% | 3.0% | 3.3% | 3 |
| 2000s | 3.8% | 3.4% | 4.2% | 5 |
| 2010s | 1.7% | 1.7% | 1.8% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
More education data for Kenya
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 168,396 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 235,728 (2016)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.44 million (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.44 million (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.74 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 8.04 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.7181 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1453 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp in Kenya?
- Government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp in Kenya was 1.7% in 2015, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 4.2% in 2004.
- What is the lowest government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.7% in 2012.
- How does Kenya rank for government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp?
- Kenya ranks 42nd out of 162 countries with data for 2015.
- Is government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is down 59.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Kenya data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of GDP (%). 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