Share of the population with at least some formal education in Lesotho
Lesotho: Share of the population with at least some formal education was 92.7% in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2020)
92.7%
World rank
74th
of 111 countries
All-time high
92.7%
in 2020
All-time low
0.7%
in 1870
Years of data
31
1870–2020
Share of the population with at least some formal education in Lesotho, 1870–2020
Source: Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of the population with at least some formal education in Lesotho is 92.7%, measured in 2020. That is the highest value across all 31 years on record.
The figure is up 2.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population with at least some formal education in Lesotho peaked at 92.7% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.7%, in 1870.
Lesotho ranks 74th of 111 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of the population with at least some formal education in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 0.7% | — |
| 1875 | 1.0% | +42.9% |
| 1880 | 1.6% | +60.0% |
| 1885 | 2.3% | +43.7% |
| 1890 | 3.4% | +47.8% |
| 1895 | 4.9% | +44.1% |
| 1900 | 6.7% | +36.7% |
| 1905 | 8.7% | +29.9% |
| 1910 | 12.0% | +37.9% |
| 1915 | 14.5% | +20.8% |
| 1920 | 17.0% | +17.2% |
| 1925 | 25.6% | +50.6% |
| 1930 | 31.3% | +22.3% |
| 1935 | 35.3% | +12.8% |
| 1940 | 41.3% | +17.0% |
| 1945 | 48.3% | +16.9% |
| 1950 | 56.3% | +16.6% |
| 1955 | 61.4% | +9.1% |
| 1960 | 66.3% | +8.0% |
| 1965 | 71.7% | +8.1% |
| 1970 | 73.2% | +2.1% |
| 1975 | 74.4% | +1.6% |
| 1980 | 76.7% | +3.1% |
| 1985 | 78.6% | +2.5% |
| 1990 | 80.6% | +2.5% |
| 1995 | 82.9% | +2.9% |
| 2000 | 85.1% | +2.7% |
| 2005 | 90.4% | +6.2% |
| 2010 | 90.5% | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 91.9% | +1.5% |
| 2020 | 92.7% | +0.9% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 92.7% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 85.2%, 1.1× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 92.7% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 78.0%, 1.2× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 0.8% | 0.7% | 1.0% | 2 |
| 1880s | 1.9% | 1.6% | 2.3% | 2 |
| 1890s | 4.2% | 3.4% | 4.9% | 2 |
| 1900s | 7.7% | 6.7% | 8.7% | 2 |
| 1910s | 13.2% | 12.0% | 14.5% | 2 |
| 1920s | 21.3% | 17.0% | 25.6% | 2 |
| 1930s | 33.3% | 31.3% | 35.3% | 2 |
| 1940s | 44.8% | 41.3% | 48.3% | 2 |
| 1950s | 58.8% | 56.3% | 61.4% | 2 |
| 1960s | 69.0% | 66.3% | 71.7% | 2 |
| 1970s | 73.8% | 73.2% | 74.4% | 2 |
| 1980s | 77.7% | 76.7% | 78.6% | 2 |
| 1990s | 81.8% | 80.6% | 82.9% | 2 |
| 2000s | 87.8% | 85.1% | 90.4% | 2 |
| 2010s | 91.2% | 90.5% | 91.9% | 2 |
| 2020s | 92.7% | 92.7% | 92.7% | 1 |
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 share of the population with at least some formal education in Lesotho?
- Share of the population with at least some formal education in Lesotho was 92.7% 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 Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 92.7% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of the population with at least some formal education recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.7% in 1870.
- How does Lesotho rank for share of the population with at least some formal education?
- Lesotho ranks 74th out of 111 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of the population with at least some formal education rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Lesotho 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.