Share of the population with at least some formal education in Benin
Benin: Share of the population with at least some formal education was 62.6% in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Share of the population with at least some formal education in Benin, 1870–2020
Source: Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Benin recorded 62.6% for share of the population with at least some formal education in 2020. That is the highest value across all 31 years on record.
The figure is up 31.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population with at least some formal education in Benin peaked at 62.6% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1870.
That places Benin 104th out of 111 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 2 |
| 1880s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 2 |
| 1890s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 2 |
| 1900s | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.3% | 2 |
| 1910s | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 2 |
| 1920s | 1.3% | 0.6% | 2.1% | 2 |
| 1930s | 4.1% | 3.5% | 4.7% | 2 |
| 1940s | 7.8% | 7.2% | 8.3% | 2 |
| 1950s | 9.6% | 8.8% | 10.4% | 2 |
| 1960s | 12.6% | 11.9% | 13.3% | 2 |
| 1970s | 14.9% | 14.4% | 15.4% | 2 |
| 1980s | 20.6% | 18.1% | 23.2% | 2 |
| 1990s | 30.9% | 28.2% | 33.6% | 2 |
| 2000s | 40.6% | 38.8% | 42.4% | 2 |
| 2010s | 51.4% | 47.7% | 55.1% | 2 |
| 2020s | 62.6% | 62.6% | 62.6% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Benin
- 101 Afghanistan 66.1% compare
- 102 Sierra Leone 64.9% compare
- 103 Liberia 64.0% compare
- 105 Yemen 62.0% compare
- 106 Senegal 58.0% compare
- 107 Mozambique 54.5% compare
More education data for Benin
- Duration of pre-primary education 2 years (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre-primary education 4 years (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 55.6% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 41.3% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 108.0% (2022)
- Primary education, teachers 59,742 (2022)
- Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling 4.48 live births per woman (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female 103.9% (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of the population with at least some formal education in Benin?
- Share of the population with at least some formal education in Benin was 62.6% in 2020, according to Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of the population with at least some formal education recorded in Benin?
- The highest recorded value was 62.6% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of the population with at least some formal education recorded in Benin?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1870.
- How does Benin rank for share of the population with at least some formal education?
- Benin ranks 104th out of 111 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of the population with at least some formal education rising or falling in Benin?
- Over the last ten years it is up 31.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Benin data come from?
- The figures come from Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of the population with at least some formal education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 31 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Based on the population aged 15 years and older.