Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in Lesotho
Lesotho: Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions was 81.8% in 2018. ▼ Falling
Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in Lesotho, 1999–2018
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2018, percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in Lesotho stood at 81.8%.
That represents a change of up 0.9% on the previous year and down 18.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in Lesotho peaked at 100.0% in 1999 and was at its lowest, 81.0%, in 2017.
That places Lesotho 55th out of 155 countries with data for 2018, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 12 years of available data.
Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 100.0% | — |
| 2000 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 86.3% | -13.7% |
| 2013 | 85.4% | -1.0% |
| 2014 | 84.5% | -1.1% |
| 2015 | 82.9% | -1.8% |
| 2017 | 81.0% | -2.3% |
| 2018 | 81.8% | +0.9% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 81.8% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 71.5%, 1.1× the median. (34 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 81.8% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 75.0%, 1.1× the median. (33 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 1 |
| 2000s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 5 |
| 2010s | 83.6% | 81.0% | 86.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More education data for Lesotho
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 5,672 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 30,627 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 22,924 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 23,698 (2022)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 136,497 (2017)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 309,480 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.8093 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1324 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in Lesotho?
- Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in Lesotho was 81.8% in 2018, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 100.0% in 1999.
- What is the lowest percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 81.0% in 2017.
- How does Lesotho rank for percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions?
- Lesotho ranks 55th out of 155 countries with data for 2018.
- Is percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 18.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Lesotho data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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