Share of children who have completed primary school in Namibia
Namibia: Share of children who have completed primary school was 86.3% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Share of children who have completed primary school in Namibia, 1981–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2025, share of children who have completed primary school in Namibia stood at 86.3%. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
The figure is up 0.7% on the previous year and up 7.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who have completed primary school in Namibia peaked at 86.3% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 48.5%, in 1981.
That places Namibia 117th out of 165 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Share of children who have completed primary school in Namibia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 48.5% | — |
| 1982 | 49.4% | +2.0% |
| 1983 | 50.4% | +1.9% |
| 1984 | 51.4% | +1.9% |
| 1985 | 52.3% | +1.9% |
| 1986 | 53.3% | +1.9% |
| 1987 | 54.4% | +2.0% |
| 1988 | 55.5% | +2.0% |
| 1989 | 56.7% | +2.1% |
| 1990 | 57.8% | +1.9% |
| 1991 | 58.9% | +2.0% |
| 1992 | 60.0% | +1.9% |
| 1993 | 61.2% | +2.0% |
| 1994 | 62.5% | +2.0% |
| 1995 | 63.6% | +1.8% |
| 1996 | 64.5% | +1.5% |
| 1997 | 65.2% | +1.1% |
| 1998 | 65.8% | +1.0% |
| 1999 | 66.7% | +1.2% |
| 2000 | 67.6% | +1.4% |
| 2001 | 68.7% | +1.6% |
| 2002 | 69.7% | +1.5% |
| 2003 | 70.8% | +1.6% |
| 2004 | 71.9% | +1.5% |
| 2005 | 73.0% | +1.5% |
| 2006 | 74.0% | +1.4% |
| 2007 | 74.9% | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 75.6% | +1.0% |
| 2009 | 76.3% | +0.9% |
| 2010 | 77.0% | +0.8% |
| 2011 | 77.6% | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 78.1% | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 78.7% | +0.7% |
| 2014 | 79.3% | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 80.0% | +0.9% |
| 2016 | 80.7% | +0.9% |
| 2017 | 81.3% | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 82.0% | +0.9% |
| 2019 | 82.7% | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 83.3% | +0.8% |
| 2021 | 84.0% | +0.8% |
| 2022 | 84.6% | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 85.2% | +0.7% |
| 2024 | 85.7% | +0.6% |
| 2025 | 86.3% | +0.7% |
Namibia compared with similar countries
- Namibia's 86.3% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 86.1%, 1.0× the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Namibia's 86.3% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 72.2%, 1.2× the median. (45 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 52.4% | 48.5% | 56.7% | 9 |
| 1990s | 62.6% | 57.8% | 66.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 72.3% | 67.6% | 76.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 79.7% | 77.0% | 82.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 84.8% | 83.3% | 86.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Namibia
More education data for Namibia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 10,653 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 90,003 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 26,964 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 27,746 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 236,050 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 590,029 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 4.48 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1947 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children who have completed primary school in Namibia?
- Share of children who have completed primary school in Namibia was 86.3% in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children who have completed primary school recorded in Namibia?
- The highest recorded value was 86.3% in 2025.
- What is the lowest share of children who have completed primary school recorded in Namibia?
- The lowest recorded value was 48.5% in 1981.
- How does Namibia rank for share of children who have completed primary school?
- Namibia ranks 117th out of 165 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of children who have completed primary school rising or falling in Namibia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Namibia data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children who have completed primary school. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Share of children who are three to five years older than the official age for the last grade of primary education who have successfully completed it. This broader age band is used to include children who started school late or had to resit particular years.