Share of children who have completed primary school in Sao Tome and Principe
Sao Tome and Principe: Share of children who have completed primary school was 93.7% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Share of children who have completed primary school in Sao Tome and Principe, 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 Sao Tome and Principe stood at 93.7%. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.7% on the previous year and up 11.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who have completed primary school in Sao Tome and Principe peaked at 93.7% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 33.1%, in 1981.
Sao Tome and Principe ranks 100th of 165 countries on this measure, 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 Sao Tome and Principe, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 33.1% | — |
| 1982 | 33.5% | +1.4% |
| 1983 | 34.0% | +1.4% |
| 1984 | 34.6% | +1.7% |
| 1985 | 35.2% | +1.6% |
| 1986 | 35.8% | +1.9% |
| 1987 | 36.5% | +1.9% |
| 1988 | 37.3% | +2.2% |
| 1989 | 38.2% | +2.3% |
| 1990 | 39.0% | +2.1% |
| 1991 | 39.8% | +2.1% |
| 1992 | 40.5% | +1.8% |
| 1993 | 41.2% | +1.7% |
| 1994 | 41.8% | +1.5% |
| 1995 | 42.4% | +1.3% |
| 1996 | 42.9% | +1.3% |
| 1997 | 43.6% | +1.5% |
| 1998 | 44.4% | +1.8% |
| 1999 | 45.3% | +2.1% |
| 2000 | 46.5% | +2.8% |
| 2001 | 48.1% | +3.4% |
| 2002 | 50.1% | +4.1% |
| 2003 | 52.2% | +4.2% |
| 2004 | 54.5% | +4.4% |
| 2005 | 57.0% | +4.6% |
| 2006 | 59.7% | +4.8% |
| 2007 | 62.6% | +4.9% |
| 2008 | 65.8% | +5.0% |
| 2009 | 69.0% | +4.9% |
| 2010 | 72.2% | +4.6% |
| 2011 | 75.3% | +4.3% |
| 2012 | 78.0% | +3.7% |
| 2013 | 80.5% | +3.1% |
| 2014 | 82.5% | +2.6% |
| 2015 | 84.3% | +2.1% |
| 2016 | 85.8% | +1.8% |
| 2017 | 87.0% | +1.5% |
| 2018 | 88.2% | +1.3% |
| 2019 | 89.2% | +1.2% |
| 2020 | 90.1% | +1.0% |
| 2021 | 91.0% | +1.0% |
| 2022 | 91.7% | +0.8% |
| 2023 | 92.4% | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 93.1% | +0.7% |
| 2025 | 93.7% | +0.7% |
Sao Tome and Principe compared with similar countries
- Sao Tome and Principe's 93.7% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 86.1%, 1.1× the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Sao Tome and Principe's 93.7% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 72.2%, 1.3× the median. (45 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 35.4% | 33.1% | 38.2% | 9 |
| 1990s | 42.1% | 39.0% | 45.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 56.6% | 46.5% | 69.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 82.3% | 72.2% | 89.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 92.0% | 90.1% | 93.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sao Tome and Principe
More education data for Sao Tome and Principe
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 936 (2016)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 4,544 (2017)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 4,458 (2016)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 4,769 (2016)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 25,875 (2017)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 37,172 (2017)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.14 % change on previous year (2017)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2017)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1796 units per person (2017)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children who have completed primary school in Sao Tome and Principe?
- Share of children who have completed primary school in Sao Tome and Principe was 93.7% 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 Sao Tome and Principe?
- The highest recorded value was 93.7% in 2025.
- What is the lowest share of children who have completed primary school recorded in Sao Tome and Principe?
- The lowest recorded value was 33.1% in 1981.
- How does Sao Tome and Principe rank for share of children who have completed primary school?
- Sao Tome and Principe ranks 100th out of 165 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of children who have completed primary school rising or falling in Sao Tome and Principe?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sao Tome and Principe 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
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.