School life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa
MDG: Sub-saharan Africa: School life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes was 7.66 years in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
7.66 years
Change on year
up 0.2%
Rank
187th
of 221 groups
All-time high
7.69 years
in 2020
All-time low
5.47 years
in 1997
Years of data
28
1997–2024
School life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa, 1997–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
MDG: Sub-saharan Africa recorded 7.66 years for school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes in 2024.
That represents a change of up 0.2% on the previous year and up 0.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa peaked at 7.69 years in 2020 and was at its lowest, 5.47 years, in 1997.
That places MDG: Sub-saharan Africa 187th out of 221 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 5.47 years | — |
| 1998 | 5.64 years | +3.1% |
| 1999 | 5.73 years | +1.5% |
| 2000 | 5.92 years | +3.3% |
| 2001 | 6.02 years | +1.7% |
| 2002 | 6.22 years | +3.3% |
| 2003 | 6.43 years | +3.3% |
| 2004 | 6.68 years | +4.0% |
| 2005 | 6.89 years | +3.2% |
| 2006 | 7.06 years | +2.4% |
| 2007 | 7.08 years | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 7.24 years | +2.2% |
| 2009 | 7.32 years | +1.2% |
| 2010 | 7.39 years | +0.9% |
| 2011 | 7.5 years | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 7.56 years | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 7.63 years | +1.0% |
| 2014 | 7.6 years | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 7.49 years | -1.5% |
| 2016 | 7.51 years | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 7.55 years | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 7.58 years | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 7.64 years | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 7.69 years | +0.7% |
| 2021 | 7.57 years | -1.6% |
| 2022 | 7.6 years | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 7.64 years | +0.6% |
| 2024 | 7.66 years | +0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 5.61 years | 5.47 years | 5.73 years | 3 |
| 2000s | 6.69 years | 5.92 years | 7.32 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.55 years | 7.39 years | 7.64 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.63 years | 7.57 years | 7.69 years | 5 |
Countries ranked near MDG: Sub-saharan Africa
- 184 Bulgaria 6.76 years compare
- 185 Micronesia, Federated States of 6.56 years compare
- 186 Eritrea 6.56 years compare
- 187 Central African Republic 6.5 years compare
- 188 Honduras 6.49 years compare
- 189 Chad 6.49 years compare
- 190 Syrian Arab Republic 6.48 years compare
More education data for MDG: Sub-saharan Africa
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 5.90 million (2021)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 39.14 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 1.62 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 42.42 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 26.38 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual 1.59 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number) 3.52 % change on previous year (2021)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 3.88 % change on previous year (2021)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 2.60 million (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
- School life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa was 7.66 years in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes recorded in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 7.69 years in 2020.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes recorded in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.47 years in 1997.
- How does MDG: Sub-saharan Africa rank for school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes?
- MDG: Sub-saharan Africa ranks 187th out of 221 groups with data for 2024.
- Is school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes rising or falling in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this MDG: Sub-saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release