Percentage of teachers in primary education who are female in South Africa
South Africa: Percentage of teachers in primary education who are female was 78.5% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Percentage of teachers in primary education who are female in South Africa, 1991–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 78.5% for percentage of teachers in primary education who are female in 2023.
The figure is down 0.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of teachers in primary education who are female in South Africa peaked at 79.8% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 58.4%, in 1994.
That places South Africa 98th out of 212 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
Percentage of teachers in primary education who are female in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 58.5% | — |
| 1994 | 58.4% | -0.1% |
| 1995 | 73.5% | +25.9% |
| 1997 | 72.9% | -0.9% |
| 1999 | 78.1% | +7.2% |
| 2000 | 75.2% | -3.8% |
| 2001 | 77.8% | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 79.8% | +2.7% |
| 2003 | 74.4% | -6.8% |
| 2004 | 76.2% | +2.4% |
| 2005 | 75.5% | -0.9% |
| 2006 | 76.4% | +1.2% |
| 2007 | 76.5% | +0.1% |
| 2008 | 76.9% | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 77.2% | +0.3% |
| 2010 | 77.1% | -0.0% |
| 2011 | 78.6% | +1.9% |
| 2012 | 79.0% | +0.5% |
| 2013 | 78.9% | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 78.6% | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 78.8% | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 78.5% | -0.4% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 78.5% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 79.4%, 99% of the median. (57 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 78.5% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 48.7%, 1.6× the median. (46 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Percentage of teachers in primary education who are female in South Africa 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | +25.9% | 58.4% | 73.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 68.3% | 58.4% | 78.1% | 5 |
| 2000s | 76.6% | 74.4% | 79.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 78.5% | 77.1% | 79.0% | 6 |
| 2020s | 78.5% | 78.5% | 78.5% | 1 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
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 percentage of teachers in primary education who are female in South Africa?
- Percentage of teachers in primary education who are female in South Africa was 78.5% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest percentage of teachers in primary education who are female recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 79.8% in 2002.
- What is the lowest percentage of teachers in primary education who are female recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 58.4% in 1994.
- How does South Africa rank for percentage of teachers in primary education who are female?
- South Africa ranks 98th out of 212 countries with data for 2023.
- Is percentage of teachers in primary education who are female rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.5%. 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 Percentage of teachers in primary education who are female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release