Share of children who have completed primary school in South Africa
South Africa: Share of children who have completed primary school was 97.1% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Share of children who have completed primary school in South Africa, 1981–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 97.1% for share of children who have completed primary school in 2025. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.2% on the previous year and up 2.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who have completed primary school in South Africa peaked at 97.1% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 68.4%, in 1981.
That places South Africa 86th 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 South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 68.4% | — |
| 1982 | 69.6% | +1.8% |
| 1983 | 71.0% | +2.0% |
| 1984 | 72.4% | +1.9% |
| 1985 | 73.8% | +1.8% |
| 1986 | 75.0% | +1.7% |
| 1987 | 76.2% | +1.7% |
| 1988 | 77.5% | +1.7% |
| 1989 | 78.7% | +1.6% |
| 1990 | 79.8% | +1.4% |
| 1991 | 80.8% | +1.2% |
| 1992 | 81.7% | +1.1% |
| 1993 | 82.5% | +1.0% |
| 1994 | 83.4% | +1.0% |
| 1995 | 84.2% | +0.9% |
| 1996 | 84.9% | +0.9% |
| 1997 | 85.6% | +0.8% |
| 1998 | 86.1% | +0.7% |
| 1999 | 86.6% | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 87.2% | +0.6% |
| 2001 | 87.6% | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 88.1% | +0.5% |
| 2003 | 88.6% | +0.6% |
| 2004 | 89.2% | +0.7% |
| 2005 | 89.8% | +0.7% |
| 2006 | 90.5% | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 91.2% | +0.7% |
| 2008 | 91.7% | +0.6% |
| 2009 | 92.1% | +0.4% |
| 2010 | 92.4% | +0.3% |
| 2011 | 92.7% | +0.2% |
| 2012 | 93.0% | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 93.4% | +0.5% |
| 2014 | 93.9% | +0.5% |
| 2015 | 94.3% | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 94.7% | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 95.0% | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 95.3% | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 95.6% | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 95.9% | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 96.2% | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 96.4% | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 96.7% | +0.3% |
| 2024 | 96.9% | +0.2% |
| 2025 | 97.1% | +0.2% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 97.1% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 98.7%, 98% of the median. (50 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 97.1% 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 | 73.6% | 68.4% | 78.7% | 9 |
| 1990s | 83.6% | 79.8% | 86.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 89.6% | 87.2% | 92.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 94.0% | 92.4% | 95.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 96.5% | 95.9% | 97.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 181,739 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 339,638 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 410,708 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 407,696 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 5.50 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 7.52 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.44 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.119 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children who have completed primary school in South Africa?
- Share of children who have completed primary school in South Africa was 97.1% 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 South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 97.1% in 2025.
- What is the lowest share of children who have completed primary school recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 68.4% in 1981.
- How does South Africa rank for share of children who have completed primary school?
- South Africa ranks 86th out of 165 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of children who have completed primary school rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa 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.