Government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of GDP in Portugal
Portugal: Government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of GDP was 2.0% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of GDP in Portugal, 1973–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Portugal recorded 2.0% for government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp in 2022.
The figure is down 2.3% on the previous year and down 7.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp in Portugal peaked at 2.5% in 2009 and was at its lowest, 0.3%, in 1973.
Portugal ranks 30th of 165 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 46 years of available data.
Government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of GDP in Portugal, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1973 | 0.3% | — |
| 1974 | 0.5% | +46.3% |
| 1975 | 0.7% | +57.4% |
| 1976 | 0.7% | -0.1% |
| 1978 | 0.9% | +28.2% |
| 1979 | 0.8% | -9.5% |
| 1980 | 0.9% | +5.3% |
| 1981 | 0.9% | +4.2% |
| 1982 | 1.0% | +7.0% |
| 1983 | 0.8% | -18.6% |
| 1984 | 1.0% | +20.5% |
| 1985 | 1.1% | +10.1% |
| 1986 | 0.9% | -11.2% |
| 1987 | 1.0% | +2.4% |
| 1988 | 1.0% | -0.8% |
| 1989 | 1.2% | +22.8% |
| 1990 | 1.2% | +3.8% |
| 1991 | 1.5% | +26.3% |
| 1992 | 1.7% | +9.9% |
| 1993 | 1.7% | +0.7% |
| 1994 | 1.8% | +6.3% |
| 1995 | 2.0% | +9.0% |
| 1996 | 2.1% | +6.6% |
| 1999 | 2.2% | +4.4% |
| 2000 | 2.2% | +1.3% |
| 2001 | 2.3% | +2.1% |
| 2002 | 2.2% | -2.1% |
| 2003 | 2.2% | -2.4% |
| 2004 | 2.1% | -4.0% |
| 2005 | 2.1% | -0.4% |
| 2006 | 2.0% | -4.1% |
| 2007 | 1.9% | -1.9% |
| 2008 | 2.0% | +1.6% |
| 2009 | 2.5% | +26.3% |
| 2010 | 2.4% | -4.7% |
| 2011 | 2.2% | -6.0% |
| 2012 | 2.2% | -1.3% |
| 2013 | 2.3% | +4.8% |
| 2014 | 2.2% | -6.4% |
| 2015 | 2.1% | -3.7% |
| 2017 | 2.2% | +7.0% |
| 2018 | 2.1% | -8.1% |
| 2019 | 2.1% | +2.2% |
| 2020 | 2.1% | +2.3% |
| 2021 | 2.1% | -2.3% |
| 2022 | 2.0% | -2.3% |
Portugal compared with similar countries
- Portugal's 2.0% is above the median for high income countries, which is 1.5%, 1.3× the median. (63 countries reporting)
- Portugal's 2.0% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 1.7%, 1.2× the median. (44 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of GDP in Portugal 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | +57.4% | 0.5% | 0.7% |
| 1974 | +46.3% | 0.3% | 0.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.7% | 0.3% | 0.9% | 6 |
| 1980s | 1.0% | 0.8% | 1.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.8% | 1.2% | 2.2% | 8 |
| 2000s | 2.1% | 1.9% | 2.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.2% | 2.1% | 2.4% | 9 |
| 2020s | 2.1% | 2.0% | 2.1% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Portugal
More education data for Portugal
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 82,664 (2018)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 11,380 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 136,282 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 128,743 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 741,752 (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 598,661 (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.89 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0566 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp in Portugal?
- Government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp in Portugal was 2.0% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Portugal?
- The highest recorded value was 2.5% in 2009.
- What is the lowest government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Portugal?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3% in 1973.
- How does Portugal rank for government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp?
- Portugal ranks 30th out of 165 countries with data for 2022.
- Is government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp rising or falling in Portugal?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Portugal data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release