Government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of GDP in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of GDP was 0.3% in 2022. ▼ Falling
Government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of GDP in Sri Lanka, 1973–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp in Sri Lanka is 0.3%, measured in 2022. That is the lowest value across all 15 years on record.
The figure is down 18.7% on the previous year and down 6.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp in Sri Lanka peaked at 1.1% in 1973 and was at its lowest, 0.3%, in 2022.
Sri Lanka ranks 157th of 162 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.
Government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of GDP in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1973 | 1.1% | — |
| 2009 | 0.6% | -48.8% |
| 2010 | 0.4% | -28.5% |
| 2011 | 0.4% | +1.4% |
| 2012 | 0.3% | -17.7% |
| 2013 | 0.4% | +3.6% |
| 2014 | 0.5% | +48.1% |
| 2015 | 0.6% | +12.1% |
| 2016 | 1.1% | +88.7% |
| 2017 | 0.9% | -23.2% |
| 2018 | 0.6% | -31.4% |
| 2019 | 0.5% | -10.5% |
| 2020 | 0.4% | -15.8% |
| 2021 | 0.4% | -10.7% |
| 2022 | 0.3% | -18.7% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 0.3% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.4%, 23% of the median. (43 countries reporting)
- Sri Lanka's 0.3% is below the median for South Asia, which is 1.1%, 29% of the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1 |
| 2000s | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 1 |
| 2010s | 0.6% | 0.3% | 1.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.4% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More education data for Sri Lanka
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 155,543 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 0 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 224,799 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 214,300 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.54 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.58 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -2.89 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0715 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp in Sri Lanka?
- Government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp in Sri Lanka was 0.3% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 1.1% in 1973.
- What is the lowest government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3% in 2022.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp?
- Sri Lanka ranks 157th out of 162 countries with data for 2022.
- Is government expenditure on primary education as a percentage of gdp rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sri Lanka 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.
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CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release