Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in private in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in private was 51.8% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in private in Sri Lanka, 2013–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Sri Lanka recorded 51.8% for percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in private in 2023.
The figure is down 3.4% on the previous year and up 16.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in private in Sri Lanka peaked at 53.6% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 43.0%, in 2014.
That places Sri Lanka 85th out of 137 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 10 years of available data.
Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in private in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 44.4% | — |
| 2014 | 43.0% | -3.0% |
| 2015 | 43.8% | +1.8% |
| 2016 | 43.4% | -1.0% |
| 2017 | 44.0% | +1.5% |
| 2018 | 45.7% | +3.7% |
| 2019 | 48.1% | +5.3% |
| 2020 | 49.6% | +3.2% |
| 2021 | 53.6% | +8.0% |
| 2023 | 51.8% | -3.4% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 51.8% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 54.8%, 94% of the median. (39 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 44.6% | 43.0% | 48.1% | 7 |
| 2020s | 51.7% | 49.6% | 53.6% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More education data for Sri Lanka
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 155,543 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 0 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 224,799 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 214,300 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.54 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.58 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -2.89 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0715 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in private in Sri Lanka?
- Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in private in Sri Lanka was 51.8% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in private recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 53.6% in 2021.
- What is the lowest percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in private recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 43.0% in 2014.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in private?
- Sri Lanka ranks 85th out of 137 countries with data for 2023.
- Is percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in private rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in private institutions, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 10 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release