Share of children who have completed primary school in Somalia
Somalia: Share of children who have completed primary school was 28.8% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Share of children who have completed primary school in Somalia, 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 Somalia stood at 28.8%. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.9% on the previous year and up 10.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who have completed primary school in Somalia peaked at 28.8% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 18.4%, in 1981.
That places Somalia 164th out of 165 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Share of children who have completed primary school in Somalia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 18.4% | — |
| 1982 | 18.6% | +1.1% |
| 1983 | 18.8% | +0.9% |
| 1984 | 19.0% | +1.2% |
| 1985 | 19.2% | +0.9% |
| 1986 | 19.4% | +1.0% |
| 1987 | 19.6% | +1.0% |
| 1988 | 19.8% | +1.1% |
| 1989 | 20.0% | +1.0% |
| 1990 | 20.0% | +0.2% |
| 1991 | 20.1% | +0.2% |
| 1992 | 20.1% | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 20.2% | +0.5% |
| 1994 | 20.3% | +0.7% |
| 1995 | 20.5% | +1.0% |
| 1996 | 20.8% | +1.6% |
| 1997 | 21.1% | +1.4% |
| 1998 | 21.4% | +1.3% |
| 1999 | 21.7% | +1.6% |
| 2000 | 22.1% | +1.7% |
| 2001 | 22.5% | +1.6% |
| 2002 | 22.8% | +1.4% |
| 2003 | 23.1% | +1.6% |
| 2004 | 23.5% | +1.4% |
| 2005 | 23.8% | +1.6% |
| 2006 | 24.1% | +1.1% |
| 2007 | 24.3% | +0.9% |
| 2008 | 24.6% | +1.0% |
| 2009 | 24.7% | +0.8% |
| 2010 | 25.0% | +1.1% |
| 2011 | 25.2% | +1.0% |
| 2012 | 25.4% | +0.6% |
| 2013 | 25.7% | +1.0% |
| 2014 | 25.8% | +0.6% |
| 2015 | 26.0% | +0.9% |
| 2016 | 26.4% | +1.2% |
| 2017 | 26.6% | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 26.8% | +0.8% |
| 2019 | 27.0% | +1.0% |
| 2020 | 27.3% | +1.0% |
| 2021 | 27.7% | +1.3% |
| 2022 | 27.9% | +1.0% |
| 2023 | 28.2% | +1.0% |
| 2024 | 28.5% | +1.0% |
| 2025 | 28.8% | +0.9% |
Somalia compared with similar countries
- Somalia's 28.8% is below the median for low income countries, which is 57.7%, 50% of the median. (23 countries reporting)
- Somalia's 28.8% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 72.2%, 40% of the median. (45 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 19.2% | 18.4% | 20.0% | 9 |
| 1990s | 20.6% | 20.0% | 21.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 23.5% | 22.1% | 24.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 26.0% | 25.0% | 27.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 28.1% | 27.3% | 28.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Somalia
- 161 Guinea-Bissau 30.5% compare
- 162 Uganda 30.4% compare
- 163 Liberia 29.8% compare
- 165 South Sudan 7.9% compare
More education data for Somalia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 4,504 (2007)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 676 (1986)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 882 (1986)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 115,828 (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 464,607 (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -7.59 % change on previous year (1986)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0253 units per person (2023)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children who have completed primary school in Somalia?
- Share of children who have completed primary school in Somalia was 28.8% 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 Somalia?
- The highest recorded value was 28.8% in 2025.
- What is the lowest share of children who have completed primary school recorded in Somalia?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.4% in 1981.
- How does Somalia rank for share of children who have completed primary school?
- Somalia ranks 164th out of 165 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of children who have completed primary school rising or falling in Somalia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Somalia 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.