Initial government funding per secondary student as a percentage of in Ireland
Ireland: Initial government funding per secondary student as a percentage of was 10.4% in 2021. ▼ Falling
Initial government funding per secondary student as a percentage of in Ireland, 1998–2021
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
In 2021, initial government funding per secondary student as a percentage of in Ireland stood at 10.4%. That is the lowest value across all 24 years on record.
The figure is down 11.7% on the previous year and down 61.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, initial government funding per secondary student as a percentage of in Ireland peaked at 28.8% in 2009 and was at its lowest, 10.4%, in 2021.
Ireland ranks 99th of 115 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Initial government funding per secondary student as a percentage of in Ireland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 16.9% | — |
| 1999 | 16.4% | -2.9% |
| 2000 | 15.9% | -3.1% |
| 2001 | 16.6% | +4.4% |
| 2002 | 17.0% | +2.5% |
| 2003 | 18.5% | +8.7% |
| 2004 | 19.6% | +6.4% |
| 2005 | 20.0% | +1.8% |
| 2006 | 21.1% | +5.6% |
| 2007 | 22.5% | +6.6% |
| 2008 | 26.7% | +18.6% |
| 2009 | 28.8% | +7.7% |
| 2010 | 27.5% | -4.5% |
| 2011 | 27.0% | -1.7% |
| 2012 | 25.6% | -5.4% |
| 2013 | 23.3% | -9.1% |
| 2014 | 21.0% | -9.9% |
| 2015 | 15.8% | -24.5% |
| 2016 | 15.6% | -1.5% |
| 2017 | 10.7% | -31.6% |
| 2018 | 11.4% | +7.2% |
| 2019 | 11.5% | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 11.8% | +2.9% |
| 2021 | 10.4% | -11.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 16.6% | 16.4% | 16.9% | 2 |
| 2000s | 20.7% | 15.9% | 28.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 18.9% | 10.7% | 27.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 11.1% | 10.4% | 11.8% | 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 secondary student as a percentage of in Ireland?
- Initial government funding per secondary student as a percentage of in Ireland was 10.4% in 2021, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest initial government funding per secondary student as a percentage of recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 28.8% in 2009.
- What is the lowest initial government funding per secondary student as a percentage of recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.4% in 2021.
- How does Ireland rank for initial government funding per secondary student as a percentage of?
- Ireland ranks 99th out of 115 countries with data for 2021.
- Is initial government funding per secondary student as a percentage of rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 61.4%. 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 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