Statizoid

Inequality in education by country

The Atkinson index measures inequality on a scale from 0 to 1. Higher values indicate higher inequality. Inequality is measured here in terms of the number of years adults older than 25 participated in formal education.

Countries reporting
181
Highest
0.5012
Guinea
Lowest
0.0116
Czechia
Median
0.1233
Years covered
14
2010–2023
Data points
2,377

What the numbers show

Inequality in education is currently reported for 181 countries. The highest value is 0.5012 in Guinea; the lowest is 0.0116 in Czechia.

The median across all reporting countries is 0.1233, and the mean is 0.1791.

The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 43.

Over the past decade 27 countries rose and 133 fell. The largest increase was in Palau (up 85.7%), and the largest decrease in Oman (down 78.5%).

Inequality in education: full country ranking

#Country LatestYear 10-year changeTrend
1 Guinea 0.5012 2023 up 3.9% rising
2 Afghanistan 0.4881 2023 up 8.9% rising
3 Bhutan 0.4823 2023 up 15.9% rising
4 Sierra Leone 0.475 2023 up 0.4% flat
5 Gambia 0.47 2023 down 4.7% flat
6 Senegal 0.47 2023 up 6.3% rising
7 Yemen 0.4645 2023 unchanged flat
8 Cote d'Ivoire 0.4611 2023 up 2.2% flat
9 Burkina Faso 0.4607 2023 up 19.2% rising
10 Djibouti 0.4578 2023 down 2.5% flat
11 East Timor 0.4491 2023 down 5.7% falling
12 Somalia 0.4461 2023 up 2.5% flat
13 Comoros 0.444 2023 down 6.8% falling
14 Benin 0.4403 2023 down 1.7% flat
15 Mauritania 0.4399 2023 up 7.9% rising
16 Pakistan 0.4353 2023 down 2.0% flat
17 Chad 0.4293 2023 up 2.6% flat
18 Ethiopia 0.4277 2023 down 3.5% flat
19 Sudan 0.4245 2023 down 0.5% flat
20 Liberia 0.4212 2023 down 1.8% flat
21 Guinea-Bissau 0.4209 2023 up 4.4% flat
22 Morocco 0.4187 2023 down 8.6% falling
23 Mali 0.4062 2023 down 0.9% falling
24 Nepal 0.398 2023 down 3.8% falling
25 South Sudan 0.3955 2023 unchanged flat
26 Burundi 0.3949 2023 up 7.1% flat
27 Nigeria 0.3783 2023 down 12.6% falling
28 Togo 0.3773 2023 down 3.0% flat
29 Saint Lucia 0.3741 2023 down 14.3% falling
30 Haiti 0.3734 2023 down 2.5% falling
31 Egypt 0.3694 2023 down 3.1% falling
32 India 0.3688 2023 down 13.1% falling
33 Bangladesh 0.3525 2023 down 11.1% falling
34 Central African Republic 0.352 2023 up 1.9% flat
35 Niger 0.3496 2023 unchanged flat
36 Guatemala 0.3495 2023 unchanged flat
37 Mozambique 0.3433 2023 up 11.4% rising
38 Angola 0.3417 2023 unchanged flat
39 Algeria 0.3328 2023 down 1.2% flat
40 Ghana 0.3304 2023 down 10.1% falling
41 Papua New Guinea 0.3212 2023 down 9.9% falling
42 Cameroon 0.3172 2023 down 5.8% falling
43 Syria 0.3149 2015 unchanged flat
44 Laos 0.3132 2023 down 8.0% falling
45 Iraq 0.2975 2023 down 2.9% flat
46 Maldives 0.2932 2023 down 26.6% falling
47 Tunisia 0.2909 2023 down 15.9% falling
48 Madagascar 0.2834 2023 down 5.9% falling
49 Cambodia 0.281 2023 down 0.8% flat
50 Malawi 0.2801 2023 down 0.7% falling
51 Uganda 0.2791 2023 down 5.0% falling
52 Cape Verde 0.2739 2023 unchanged flat
53 Rwanda 0.2736 2023 down 7.0% falling
54 Myanmar 0.2685 2023 unchanged flat
55 Democratic Republic of Congo 0.2677 2023 down 3.3% falling
56 Tanzania 0.262 2023 down 8.1% falling
57 Nicaragua 0.258 2023 down 9.2% falling
58 Namibia 0.2502 2023 unchanged falling
59 Botswana 0.2328 2023 unchanged flat
60 Kuwait 0.2211 2023 down 3.5% flat
61 Iran 0.2188 2023 down 26.5% falling
62 Honduras 0.2161 2023 down 11.5% falling
63 El Salvador 0.2129 2023 down 19.4% falling
64 Eswatini 0.2096 2023 down 21.7% falling
65 Congo 0.2093 2023 down 2.7% falling
66 Gabon 0.2064 2023 down 12.1% falling
67 Zambia 0.2044 2023 down 6.0% falling
68 Kenya 0.1967 2023 down 24.4% falling
69 Lesotho 0.1956 2023 down 19.5% falling
70 Peru 0.1928 2023 down 12.2% falling
71 Sao Tome and Principe 0.187 2023 down 6.5% falling
72 Suriname 0.1837 2023 down 3.5% flat
73 Vanuatu 0.1789 2023 up 2.3% flat
74 Solomon Islands 0.1735 2023 unchanged flat
75 South Africa 0.1729 2023 up 7.7% rising
76 Colombia 0.1697 2023 down 17.8% falling
77 Thailand 0.1595 2023 down 3.8% flat
78 Mexico 0.1595 2023 down 16.9% falling
79 Vietnam 0.1525 2023 down 13.5% falling
80 Brazil 0.1505 2023 down 61.0% falling
81 Bolivia 0.1504 2023 down 24.4% falling
82 Belize 0.1481 2023 down 6.6% falling
83 Paraguay 0.1473 2023 up 15.0% rising
84 Zimbabwe 0.1461 2023 down 18.1% falling
85 Dominican Republic 0.146 2023 down 23.3% falling
86 Bahrain 0.132 2023 down 40.4% falling
87 Jordan 0.1298 2023 down 23.2% falling
88 Indonesia 0.1295 2023 down 30.2% falling
89 Saudi Arabia 0.1275 2023 down 31.4% falling
90 Turkey 0.124 2023 down 14.0% falling
91 Albania 0.1233 2023 up 3.6% rising
92 Ecuador 0.121 2023 down 21.7% falling
93 Philippines 0.1203 2023 up 4.1% falling
94 Mongolia 0.1188 2023 down 0.3% flat
95 Sri Lanka 0.113 2023 down 14.8% falling
96 Costa Rica 0.1096 2023 down 8.8% falling
97 Guyana 0.1043 2023 down 0.5% flat
98 China 0.1029 2023 down 11.9% falling
99 Bosnia and Herzegovina 0.1012 2023 down 51.3% falling
100 Brunei 0.1012 2023 down 32.2% falling
101 Qatar 0.1008 2023 down 28.6% falling
102 Panama 0.0987 2023 down 27.4% falling
103 Portugal 0.0984 2023 down 47.2% falling
104 Venezuela 0.0973 2023 down 43.8% falling
105 Kiribati 0.0964 2023 unchanged flat
106 Spain 0.0963 2023 down 49.7% falling
107 Palestine 0.0952 2023 down 27.6% falling
108 United Arab Emirates 0.0931 2023 down 49.0% falling
109 Tuvalu 0.0918 2023 — flat
110 Cuba 0.091 2023 down 19.2% falling
111 Malaysia 0.0902 2023 down 38.8% falling
112 Singapore 0.087 2023 down 24.7% falling
113 Hong Kong 0.0868 2023 down 24.2% falling
114 North Macedonia 0.0837 2023 down 20.6% falling
115 Montenegro 0.0782 2023 up 6.1% falling
116 Uruguay 0.0759 2023 down 18.1% falling
117 Italy 0.0754 2023 down 35.8% falling
118 Mauritius 0.0742 2023 down 44.0% falling
119 Grenada 0.0704 2023 down 16.2% falling
120 Samoa 0.0703 2023 — flat
121 Greece 0.0669 2023 down 52.5% falling
122 North Korea 0.0668 2023 down 23.5% falling
123 Seychelles 0.0666 2023 — flat
124 Oman 0.0651 2023 down 78.5% falling
125 South Korea 0.0617 2023 down 29.3% falling
126 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 0.0608 2023 unchanged flat
127 Tajikistan 0.0604 2023 down 7.7% falling
128 Chile 0.0599 2023 down 27.9% falling
129 Trinidad and Tobago 0.0587 2023 down 39.5% falling
130 Jamaica 0.0583 2023 up 4.0% rising
131 Palau 0.0581 2023 up 85.7% rising
132 Japan 0.0575 2023 up 28.8% rising
133 Andorra 0.0558 2023 down 44.0% falling
134 Barbados 0.0555 2023 unchanged flat
135 Cyprus 0.0541 2023 down 59.9% falling
137 France 0.053 2023 down 17.7% flat
138 Israel 0.0528 2023 down 24.2% falling
140 Argentina 0.049 2023 down 24.8% falling
141 Poland 0.0476 2023 down 15.8% falling
142 Netherlands 0.0465 2023 up 9.5% rising
143 Bulgaria 0.0433 2023 down 34.5% falling
144 Tonga 0.0431 2023 — flat
145 Australia 0.0431 2023 down 27.4% falling
146 Azerbaijan 0.0428 2023 up 22.3% rising
147 San Marino 0.0414 2023 down 25.6% falling
148 Serbia 0.0411 2023 down 58.5% falling
149 New Zealand 0.0406 2023 — flat
150 Belgium 0.04 2023 down 50.3% falling
151 Marshall Islands 0.0399 2023 down 16.3% falling
152 Romania 0.0374 2023 down 35.0% falling
153 Germany 0.0372 2023 up 34.9% rising
154 Ukraine 0.036 2023 unchanged falling
155 Bahamas 0.034 2023 down 50.9% falling
156 Kyrgyzstan 0.0336 2023 down 32.9% falling
157 Kazakhstan 0.0317 2023 down 46.1% falling
158 United Kingdom 0.0316 2023 up 30.8% rising
159 Croatia 0.03 2023 down 48.5% falling
160 Turkmenistan 0.0294 2023 down 43.8% falling
161 Armenia 0.0293 2023 down 20.4% falling
162 Belarus 0.0277 2023 down 24.6% falling
163 United States 0.0266 2023 down 5.8% falling
164 Austria 0.0263 2023 down 39.4% falling
165 Sweden 0.0256 2023 down 33.6% falling
167 Hungary 0.0255 2023 down 25.5% falling
168 Georgia 0.0245 2023 down 31.9% falling
169 Denmark 0.0231 2023 down 32.1% falling
170 Iceland 0.0226 2023 down 22.0% falling
171 Moldova 0.0223 2023 down 31.2% falling
172 Canada 0.0223 2023 down 16.8% falling
173 Monaco 0.0218 2023 unchanged flat
174 Finland 0.0205 2023 down 13.5% falling
175 Lithuania 0.0196 2023 down 66.7% falling
176 Slovenia 0.0195 2023 down 28.5% falling
177 Norway 0.0177 2023 down 10.4% rising
178 Uzbekistan 0.0177 2023 down 8.4% falling
179 Switzerland 0.0176 2023 down 12.5% falling
180 Latvia 0.017 2023 down 47.5% falling
181 Estonia 0.0164 2023 down 29.9% falling
182 Russia 0.0151 2023 down 50.5% falling
183 Slovakia 0.0146 2023 down 19.7% falling
184 Czechia 0.0116 2023 down 15.1% falling

About this data

Indicator
Inequality in education
Source
UNDP, Human Development Report (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
184 places, 2,377 data points, 2010–2023
Last refreshed

The Atkinson index measures inequality on a scale from 0 to 1. Higher values indicate higher inequality. Inequality is measured here in terms of the number of years adults older than 25 participated in formal education.