Government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of GDP in Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago: Government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of GDP was 0.7% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of GDP in Trinidad and Tobago, 1980–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp in Trinidad and Tobago is 0.7%, measured in 2023.
The figure is up 11.0% on the previous year and down 43.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp in Trinidad and Tobago peaked at 1.5% in 2016 and was at its lowest, 0.4%, in 1990.
Trinidad and Tobago ranks 104th of 173 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 21 years of available data.
Government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of GDP in Trinidad and Tobago, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 0.7% | — |
| 1982 | 0.7% | -0.3% |
| 1983 | 1.2% | +84.5% |
| 1984 | 1.3% | +4.6% |
| 1985 | 1.0% | -18.5% |
| 1989 | 0.5% | -49.4% |
| 1990 | 0.4% | -19.3% |
| 2010 | 1.4% | +234.1% |
| 2011 | 1.4% | -2.7% |
| 2012 | 1.3% | -6.2% |
| 2013 | 1.2% | -7.5% |
| 2014 | 1.2% | +1.3% |
| 2015 | 1.3% | +11.1% |
| 2016 | 1.5% | +9.4% |
| 2017 | 1.0% | -28.8% |
| 2018 | 1.0% | -3.7% |
| 2019 | 1.0% | -0.9% |
| 2020 | 1.3% | +35.7% |
| 2021 | 0.7% | -44.5% |
| 2022 | 0.6% | -18.8% |
| 2023 | 0.7% | +11.0% |
Trinidad and Tobago compared with similar countries
- Trinidad and Tobago's 0.7% is below the median for high income countries, which is 0.9%, 76% of the median. (67 countries reporting)
- Trinidad and Tobago's 0.7% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 0.8%, 85% of the median. (35 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of GDP in Trinidad and Tobago 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | +234.1% | 0.4% | 1.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0.9% | 0.5% | 1.3% | 6 |
| 1990s | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 1 |
| 2010s | 1.2% | 1.0% | 1.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.8% | 0.6% | 1.3% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Trinidad and Tobago
More education data for Trinidad and Tobago
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 7,950 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 8,036 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 12,546 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 12,926 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 91,195 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 126,491 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.94 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0924 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp in Trinidad and Tobago?
- Government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp in Trinidad and Tobago was 0.7% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Trinidad and Tobago?
- The highest recorded value was 1.5% in 2016.
- What is the lowest government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Trinidad and Tobago?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.4% in 1990.
- How does Trinidad and Tobago rank for government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp?
- Trinidad and Tobago ranks 104th out of 173 countries with data for 2023.
- Is government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp rising or falling in Trinidad and Tobago?
- Over the last ten years it is down 43.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Trinidad and Tobago data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 21 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release