Initial government funding per lower secondary student as a in Ireland
Ireland: Initial government funding per lower secondary student as a was 10.3% in 2021. ▼ Falling
Initial government funding per lower secondary student as a in Ireland, 1998–2021
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
The most recent figure for initial government funding per lower secondary student as a in Ireland is 10.3%, measured in 2021.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 9.4% on the previous year and down 58.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, initial government funding per lower secondary student as a in Ireland peaked at 26.5% in 2009 and was at its lowest, 10.0%, in 2017.
That places Ireland 82nd out of 103 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Initial government funding per lower secondary student as a in Ireland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 16.3% | — |
| 1999 | 15.9% | -2.0% |
| 2000 | 15.2% | -4.4% |
| 2001 | 15.8% | +3.8% |
| 2002 | 16.1% | +1.7% |
| 2003 | 17.4% | +7.9% |
| 2004 | 17.9% | +3.0% |
| 2005 | 18.5% | +3.4% |
| 2006 | 19.3% | +4.2% |
| 2007 | 20.0% | +3.6% |
| 2008 | 23.8% | +19.1% |
| 2009 | 26.5% | +11.6% |
| 2010 | 25.7% | -3.2% |
| 2011 | 24.5% | -4.4% |
| 2012 | 23.4% | -4.8% |
| 2013 | 21.6% | -7.6% |
| 2014 | 19.3% | -10.8% |
| 2015 | 14.8% | -23.3% |
| 2016 | 14.6% | -1.2% |
| 2017 | 10.0% | -31.6% |
| 2018 | 10.9% | +9.2% |
| 2019 | 10.8% | -0.7% |
| 2020 | 11.4% | +5.2% |
| 2021 | 10.3% | -9.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 16.1% | 15.9% | 16.3% | 2 |
| 2000s | 19.1% | 15.2% | 26.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 17.6% | 10.0% | 25.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 10.9% | 10.3% | 11.4% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More education data for Ireland
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 32,531 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 1,942 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 52,745 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 49,975 (2022)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 456,625 (2022)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 548,873 (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.49 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1053 units per person (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is initial government funding per lower secondary student as a in Ireland?
- Initial government funding per lower secondary student as a in Ireland was 10.3% in 2021, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest initial government funding per lower secondary student as a recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 26.5% in 2009.
- What is the lowest initial government funding per lower secondary student as a recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.0% in 2017.
- How does Ireland rank for initial government funding per lower secondary student as a?
- Ireland ranks 82nd out of 103 countries with data for 2021.
- Is initial government funding per lower secondary student as a rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 58.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Initial government funding per lower secondary student as a percentage of GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release