Participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal in Belgium
Belgium: Participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal was 16.6% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal in Belgium, 1990–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal in Belgium stood at 16.6%. That is the highest value across all 32 years on record.
That represents a change of up 21.0% on the previous year and up 111.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal in Belgium peaked at 16.6% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 2.2%, in 1990.
Belgium ranks 13th of 105 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 32 years of available data.
Participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal in Belgium, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 2.2% | — |
| 1991 | 2.4% | +6.6% |
| 1992 | 2.8% | +17.7% |
| 1993 | 3.2% | +16.0% |
| 1994 | 3.2% | +0.3% |
| 1995 | 3.5% | +6.9% |
| 1996 | 3.6% | +2.6% |
| 1997 | 3.7% | +2.7% |
| 1998 | 5.3% | +43.8% |
| 2000 | 7.9% | +50.0% |
| 2001 | 8.5% | +8.3% |
| 2002 | 7.4% | -13.1% |
| 2003 | 9.8% | +31.5% |
| 2004 | 11.0% | +12.6% |
| 2005 | 9.4% | -14.2% |
| 2006 | 8.9% | -5.7% |
| 2007 | 8.4% | -5.6% |
| 2008 | 8.1% | -3.4% |
| 2009 | 8.1% | -0.0% |
| 2010 | 8.4% | +3.8% |
| 2011 | 8.4% | -0.0% |
| 2012 | 7.9% | -5.9% |
| 2013 | 7.8% | -1.0% |
| 2014 | 8.5% | +8.2% |
| 2015 | 7.9% | -7.3% |
| 2016 | 8.1% | +2.5% |
| 2017 | 8.7% | +8.6% |
| 2018 | 8.3% | -5.2% |
| 2019 | 8.9% | +7.5% |
| 2020 | 7.1% | -20.3% |
| 2022 | 13.7% | +93.1% |
| 2023 | 16.6% | +21.0% |
Belgium compared with similar countries
- Belgium's 16.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 9.3%, 1.8× the median. (42 countries reporting)
- Belgium's 16.6% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 7.8%, 2.1× the median. (41 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal in Belgium changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | +93.1% | 7.1% | 13.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 3.3% | 2.2% | 5.3% | 9 |
| 2000s | 8.8% | 7.4% | 11.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 8.3% | 7.8% | 8.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 12.5% | 7.1% | 16.6% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Belgium
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 participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal in Belgium?
- Participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal in Belgium was 16.6% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal recorded in Belgium?
- The highest recorded value was 16.6% in 2023.
- What is the lowest participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal recorded in Belgium?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.2% in 1990.
- How does Belgium rank for participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal?
- Belgium ranks 13th out of 105 countries with data for 2023.
- Is participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal rising or falling in Belgium?
- Over the last ten years it is up 111.7%. 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 Participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal education and training in the previous 12 months, 25-54 years old, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 32 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release