Primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates in Laos
Laos: Primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates was 93.1% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates in Laos, 1971–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2025, primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates in Laos stood at 93.1%.
That represents a change of down 0.8% on the previous year and down 18.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates in Laos peaked at 119.7% in 2010 and was at its lowest, 57.9%, in 1971.
That places Laos 175th out of 217 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 51 years of available data.
Primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates in Laos, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 57.9% | — |
| 1972 | 61.6% | +6.3% |
| 1973 | 61.6% | +0.2% |
| 1976 | 66.0% | +7.0% |
| 1977 | 99.3% | +50.4% |
| 1978 | 99.0% | -0.3% |
| 1979 | 102.7% | +3.7% |
| 1980 | 102.4% | -0.2% |
| 1981 | 103.1% | +0.7% |
| 1982 | 100.6% | -2.4% |
| 1983 | 98.0% | -2.6% |
| 1984 | 96.5% | -1.5% |
| 1985 | 96.2% | -0.4% |
| 1986 | 99.4% | +3.3% |
| 1988 | 101.3% | +2.0% |
| 1990 | 96.6% | -4.7% |
| 1991 | 95.7% | -1.0% |
| 1992 | 93.2% | -2.5% |
| 1993 | 99.1% | +6.3% |
| 1994 | 102.6% | +3.6% |
| 1995 | 103.9% | +1.2% |
| 1996 | 107.5% | +3.5% |
| 1997 | 108.4% | +0.8% |
| 1998 | 110.0% | +1.5% |
| 1999 | 107.9% | -1.9% |
| 2000 | 105.7% | -2.0% |
| 2001 | 103.3% | -2.3% |
| 2002 | 105.2% | +1.9% |
| 2003 | 107.5% | +2.1% |
| 2004 | 108.6% | +1.1% |
| 2005 | 110.0% | +1.3% |
| 2006 | 110.8% | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 112.5% | +1.5% |
| 2008 | 115.0% | +2.2% |
| 2009 | 117.4% | +2.1% |
| 2010 | 119.7% | +2.0% |
| 2011 | 119.1% | -0.5% |
| 2012 | 118.4% | -0.6% |
| 2013 | 118.4% | -0.0% |
| 2014 | 117.4% | -0.8% |
| 2015 | 114.3% | -2.7% |
| 2016 | 110.5% | -3.3% |
| 2017 | 107.4% | -2.8% |
| 2018 | 104.3% | -3.0% |
| 2019 | 102.0% | -2.2% |
| 2020 | 100.3% | -1.7% |
| 2021 | 99.1% | -1.2% |
| 2022 | 95.7% | -3.4% |
| 2023 | 95.0% | -0.7% |
| 2024 | 93.9% | -1.2% |
| 2025 | 93.1% | -0.8% |
Laos compared with similar countries
- Laos's 93.1% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 102.7%, 91% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Laos's 93.1% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 100.7%, 92% of the median. (35 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates in Laos 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | +50.4% | 66.0% | 99.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 78.3% | 57.9% | 102.7% | 7 |
| 1980s | 99.7% | 96.2% | 103.1% | 8 |
| 1990s | 102.5% | 93.2% | 110.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 109.6% | 103.3% | 117.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 113.2% | 102.0% | 119.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 96.2% | 93.1% | 100.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Laos
More education data for Laos
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 35,584 (2022)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 16,396 (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 116,303 (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 115,863 (2025)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 532,092 (2025)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 739,554 (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.0716 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0939 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates in Laos?
- Primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates in Laos was 93.1% in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates recorded in Laos?
- The highest recorded value was 119.7% in 2010.
- What is the lowest primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates recorded in Laos?
- The lowest recorded value was 57.9% in 1971.
- How does Laos rank for primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates?
- Laos ranks 175th out of 217 countries with data for 2025.
- Is primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates rising or falling in Laos?
- Over the last ten years it is down 18.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Laos data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Primary, secondary and tertiary education enrollment and completion rates. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Number of children of any age group who are enrolled in primary education, expressed as a percentage of the total population of the official primary school age.