Non-teaching staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure in South Africa
South Africa: Non-teaching staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure was 16.2% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Non-teaching staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure in South Africa, 2005–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 16.2% for non-teaching staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure in 2024. That is the highest value across all 12 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 9.5% on the previous year and up 133.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, non-teaching staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure in South Africa peaked at 16.2% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 2.8%, in 2005.
That places South Africa 27th out of 72 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 12 years of available data.
Non-teaching staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 2.8% | — |
| 2006 | 5.3% | +89.7% |
| 2008 | 8.3% | +57.5% |
| 2016 | 6.9% | -17.0% |
| 2017 | 6.4% | -7.1% |
| 2018 | 14.0% | +118.2% |
| 2019 | 13.1% | -6.3% |
| 2020 | 12.2% | -6.8% |
| 2021 | 15.1% | +23.6% |
| 2022 | 14.2% | -6.1% |
| 2023 | 14.8% | +3.8% |
| 2024 | 16.2% | +9.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 5.5% | 2.8% | 8.3% | 3 |
| 2010s | 10.1% | 6.4% | 14.0% | 4 |
| 2020s | 14.5% | 12.2% | 16.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 24 Switzerland 17.0% compare
- 25 Ghana 16.8% compare
- 26 Andorra 16.7% compare
- 28 Italy 15.6% compare
- 29 Iran, Islamic Republic of 15.1% compare
- 30 Luxembourg 14.9% compare
More education data for South Africa
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 181,739 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 339,638 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 410,708 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 407,696 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 5.50 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 7.52 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.44 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.119 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is non-teaching staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure in South Africa?
- Non-teaching staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure in South Africa was 16.2% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest non-teaching staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 16.2% in 2024.
- What is the lowest non-teaching staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.8% in 2005.
- How does South Africa rank for non-teaching staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure?
- South Africa ranks 27th out of 72 countries with data for 2024.
- Is non-teaching staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 133.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Non-teaching staff compensation as a percentage of total expenditure in public institutions (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release