Initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP in Belgium
Belgium: Initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP was 6.3% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Latest (2022)
6.3%
Change on year
down 1.2%
World rank
17th
of 185 countries
All-time high
6.8%
in 2020
All-time low
3.0%
in 1995
Years of data
31
1975–2022
Initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP in Belgium, 1975–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2022, initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp in Belgium stood at 6.3%.
The figure is down 1.2% on the previous year and down 5.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp in Belgium peaked at 6.8% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 3.0%, in 1995.
Belgium ranks 17th of 185 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 31 years of available data.
Initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP in Belgium, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 5.8% | — |
| 1976 | 5.7% | -0.6% |
| 1977 | 6.0% | +4.5% |
| 1978 | 5.4% | -9.2% |
| 1979 | 5.4% | -1.0% |
| 1980 | 5.3% | -1.3% |
| 1981 | 5.4% | +2.3% |
| 1982 | 5.3% | -2.2% |
| 1986 | 4.9% | -8.7% |
| 1987 | 4.6% | -5.7% |
| 1988 | 4.3% | -6.0% |
| 1993 | 5.4% | +24.9% |
| 1994 | 5.4% | +0.7% |
| 1995 | 3.0% | -44.8% |
| 1996 | 3.0% | +2.0% |
| 2005 | 5.8% | +90.1% |
| 2008 | 6.3% | +9.2% |
| 2009 | 6.5% | +1.9% |
| 2010 | 6.4% | -0.3% |
| 2011 | 6.4% | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 6.6% | +2.5% |
| 2013 | 6.6% | +0.5% |
| 2014 | 6.6% | -0.6% |
| 2015 | 6.4% | -2.1% |
| 2016 | 6.5% | +0.1% |
| 2017 | 6.4% | -0.6% |
| 2018 | 6.4% | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 6.3% | -0.8% |
| 2020 | 6.8% | +7.4% |
| 2021 | 6.3% | -6.6% |
| 2022 | 6.3% | -1.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.7% | 5.4% | 6.0% | 5 |
| 1980s | 5.0% | 4.3% | 5.4% | 6 |
| 1990s | 4.2% | 3.0% | 5.4% | 4 |
| 2000s | 6.2% | 5.8% | 6.5% | 3 |
| 2010s | 6.5% | 6.3% | 6.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.5% | 6.3% | 6.8% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Belgium
- 14 Republic of Moldova 6.6% compare
- 15 Finland 6.4% compare
- 16 Denmark 6.4% compare
- 18 Puerto Rico 6.1% compare
- 19 South Africa 6.0% compare
- 20 Tunisia 6.0% compare
More education data for Belgium
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 137,795 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 17,384 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 221,494 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 210,503 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.18 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 814,388 (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.1356 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0691 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp in Belgium?
- Initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp in Belgium was 6.3% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Belgium?
- The highest recorded value was 6.8% in 2020.
- What is the lowest initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Belgium?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.0% in 1995.
- How does Belgium rank for initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp?
- Belgium ranks 17th out of 185 countries with data for 2022.
- Is initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp rising or falling in Belgium?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Belgium data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 31 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release