Government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of GDP in South Africa
South Africa: Government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of GDP was 2.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of GDP in South Africa, 1999–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 2.0% for government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.1% on the previous year and up 16.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp in South Africa peaked at 2.2% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 1.4%, in 2008.
That places South Africa 33rd out of 165 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 26 years of available data.
Government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of GDP in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 1.8% | — |
| 2000 | 1.5% | -13.7% |
| 2001 | 1.4% | -6.2% |
| 2002 | 1.4% | -1.5% |
| 2003 | 1.5% | +8.0% |
| 2004 | 1.6% | +4.6% |
| 2005 | 1.5% | -8.3% |
| 2006 | 1.4% | -4.5% |
| 2007 | 1.5% | +6.4% |
| 2008 | 1.4% | -9.1% |
| 2009 | 1.5% | +8.0% |
| 2010 | 1.6% | +9.8% |
| 2011 | 1.8% | +9.3% |
| 2012 | 1.8% | -0.7% |
| 2013 | 1.6% | -8.0% |
| 2014 | 1.7% | +5.5% |
| 2015 | 1.7% | -1.1% |
| 2016 | 1.7% | -1.1% |
| 2017 | 1.6% | -1.0% |
| 2018 | 1.7% | +5.4% |
| 2019 | 1.8% | +1.4% |
| 2020 | 2.1% | +16.9% |
| 2021 | 2.2% | +5.6% |
| 2022 | 2.0% | -8.9% |
| 2023 | 1.9% | -1.9% |
| 2024 | 2.0% | +2.1% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 2.0% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.5%, 1.3× the median. (44 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 2.0% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1.0%, 2.0× the median. (38 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 1.8% | 1.8% | 1.8% | 1 |
| 2000s | 1.5% | 1.4% | 1.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.7% | 1.6% | 1.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.0% | 1.9% | 2.2% | 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 secondary education as a percentage of gdp in South Africa?
- Government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp in South Africa was 2.0% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 2.2% in 2021.
- What is the lowest government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.4% in 2008.
- How does South Africa rank for government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp?
- South Africa ranks 33rd out of 165 countries with data for 2024.
- Is government expenditure on secondary education as a percentage of gdp rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.6%. 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 secondary education as a percentage of GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release