Progression to secondary school in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income): Progression to secondary school was 75.6% in 2016. ▲ Rising
Progression to secondary school in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), 1971–2016
Source: Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2016, progression to secondary school in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) stood at 75.6%.
That represents a change of down 1.0% on the previous year and up 3.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, progression to secondary school in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) peaked at 76.4% in 2011 and was at its lowest, 53.6%, in 1984.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) 39th out of 40 groups with data for 2016, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 46 years of available data.
Progression to secondary school in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 64.4% | — |
| 1972 | 63.2% | -1.8% |
| 1973 | 61.9% | -2.1% |
| 1974 | 61.4% | -0.8% |
| 1975 | 60.4% | -1.6% |
| 1976 | 60.0% | -0.7% |
| 1977 | 59.0% | -1.7% |
| 1978 | 59.1% | +0.1% |
| 1979 | 59.1% | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 58.6% | -1.0% |
| 1981 | 55.9% | -4.6% |
| 1982 | 56.4% | +0.9% |
| 1983 | 54.6% | -3.2% |
| 1984 | 53.6% | -1.8% |
| 1985 | 55.9% | +4.4% |
| 1986 | 57.5% | +2.7% |
| 1987 | 58.3% | +1.5% |
| 1988 | 59.8% | +2.6% |
| 1989 | 60.2% | +0.5% |
| 1990 | 59.8% | -0.5% |
| 1991 | 59.7% | -0.3% |
| 1992 | 59.1% | -0.9% |
| 1993 | 58.2% | -1.5% |
| 1994 | 59.0% | +1.2% |
| 1995 | 59.8% | +1.4% |
| 1996 | 60.6% | +1.4% |
| 1997 | 60.4% | -0.3% |
| 1998 | 61.9% | +2.5% |
| 1999 | 61.3% | -1.1% |
| 2000 | 62.9% | +2.7% |
| 2001 | 65.0% | +3.4% |
| 2002 | 66.7% | +2.7% |
| 2003 | 68.6% | +2.7% |
| 2004 | 70.8% | +3.3% |
| 2005 | 71.6% | +1.1% |
| 2006 | 72.8% | +1.7% |
| 2007 | 74.6% | +2.4% |
| 2008 | 74.1% | -0.6% |
| 2009 | 75.0% | +1.2% |
| 2010 | 75.8% | +1.0% |
| 2011 | 76.4% | +0.9% |
| 2012 | 75.8% | -0.7% |
| 2013 | 76.1% | +0.4% |
| 2014 | 76.1% | -0.0% |
| 2015 | 76.3% | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 75.6% | -1.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 61.0% | 59.0% | 64.4% | 9 |
| 1980s | 57.1% | 53.6% | 60.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 60.0% | 58.2% | 61.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 70.2% | 62.9% | 75.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 76.0% | 75.6% | 76.4% | 7 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
More education data for Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1526 units per person (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 5.14 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 196.79 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.9733 % change on previous year (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Population ages 15-64 56.4% (2025)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 81.42 million (2024)
- Population ages 0-14 40.4% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is progression to secondary school in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- Progression to secondary school in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) was 75.6% in 2016, according to Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest progression to secondary school recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- The highest recorded value was 76.4% in 2011.
- What is the lowest progression to secondary school recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- The lowest recorded value was 53.6% in 1984.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) rank for progression to secondary school?
- Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) ranks 39th out of 40 groups with data for 2016.
- Is progression to secondary school rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) data come from?
- The figures come from Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Progression to secondary school (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Progression to secondary school refers to the number of new entrants to the first grade of secondary school in a given year as a percentage of the number of students enrolled in the final grade of primary school in the previous year (minus the number of repeaters from the last grade of primary education in the given year).