Share of the population with at least some formal education in Panama
Panama: Share of the population with at least some formal education was 95.9% in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Share of the population with at least some formal education in Panama, 1870–2020
Source: Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Panama recorded 95.9% for share of the population with at least some formal education in 2020. That is the highest value across all 31 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population with at least some formal education in Panama peaked at 95.9% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 2.2%, in 1870.
That places Panama 63rd out of 111 countries with data for 2020, putting it 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 Panama, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 2.2% | — |
| 1875 | 2.7% | +22.7% |
| 1880 | 3.4% | +25.9% |
| 1885 | 4.3% | +26.5% |
| 1890 | 5.5% | +27.9% |
| 1895 | 6.8% | +23.6% |
| 1900 | 19.0% | +179.4% |
| 1905 | 23.3% | +22.6% |
| 1910 | 31.5% | +35.2% |
| 1915 | 36.5% | +15.9% |
| 1920 | 40.3% | +10.4% |
| 1925 | 44.0% | +9.2% |
| 1930 | 50.0% | +13.6% |
| 1935 | 57.8% | +15.6% |
| 1940 | 62.3% | +7.8% |
| 1945 | 65.8% | +5.6% |
| 1950 | 68.8% | +4.6% |
| 1955 | 73.4% | +6.7% |
| 1960 | 78.4% | +6.8% |
| 1965 | 80.0% | +2.0% |
| 1970 | 81.1% | +1.4% |
| 1975 | 84.8% | +4.6% |
| 1980 | 87.9% | +3.7% |
| 1985 | 90.5% | +3.0% |
| 1990 | 92.2% | +1.9% |
| 1995 | 93.2% | +1.1% |
| 2000 | 94.3% | +1.2% |
| 2005 | 94.6% | +0.3% |
| 2010 | 94.8% | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 95.5% | +0.7% |
| 2020 | 95.9% | +0.4% |
Panama compared with similar countries
- Panama's 95.9% is below the median for high income countries, which is 99.0%, 97% of the median. (41 countries reporting)
- Panama's 95.9% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 97.1%, 99% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of the population with at least some formal education in Panama 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | +179.4% | 6.8% | 19.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 2.5% | 2.2% | 2.7% | 2 |
| 1880s | 3.8% | 3.4% | 4.3% | 2 |
| 1890s | 6.2% | 5.5% | 6.8% | 2 |
| 1900s | 21.1% | 19.0% | 23.3% | 2 |
| 1910s | 34.0% | 31.5% | 36.5% | 2 |
| 1920s | 42.1% | 40.3% | 44.0% | 2 |
| 1930s | 53.9% | 50.0% | 57.8% | 2 |
| 1940s | 64.0% | 62.3% | 65.8% | 2 |
| 1950s | 71.1% | 68.8% | 73.4% | 2 |
| 1960s | 79.2% | 78.4% | 80.0% | 2 |
| 1970s | 82.9% | 81.1% | 84.8% | 2 |
| 1980s | 89.2% | 87.9% | 90.5% | 2 |
| 1990s | 92.7% | 92.2% | 93.2% | 2 |
| 2000s | 94.4% | 94.3% | 94.6% | 2 |
| 2010s | 95.2% | 94.8% | 95.5% | 2 |
| 2020s | 95.9% | 95.9% | 95.9% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Panama
More education data for Panama
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 23,777 (2017)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 10,042 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 47,857 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 46,052 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 311,983 (2017)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 451,308 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.02 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0999 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of the population with at least some formal education in Panama?
- Share of the population with at least some formal education in Panama was 95.9% 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 Panama?
- The highest recorded value was 95.9% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of the population with at least some formal education recorded in Panama?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.2% in 1870.
- How does Panama rank for share of the population with at least some formal education?
- Panama ranks 63rd out of 111 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of the population with at least some formal education rising or falling in Panama?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Panama 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.