School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes (years) in Democratic Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo: School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes (years) was 10.39 years in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
10.39 years
Change on year
down 1.3%
World rank
157th
of 213 countries
All-time high
10.53 years
in 2021
All-time low
6.06 years
in 1992
Years of data
33
1971–2023
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Democratic Republic of Congo, 1971–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2023, school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Democratic Republic of Congo stood at 10.39 years.
The figure is down 1.3% on the previous year and up 21.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at 10.53 years in 2021 and was at its lowest, 6.06 years, in 1992.
That places Democratic Republic of Congo 157th out of 213 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes (years) in Democratic Republic of Congo, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 6.72 years | — |
| 1972 | 6.82 years | +1.6% |
| 1973 | 6.49 years | -4.9% |
| 1974 | 6.41 years | -1.2% |
| 1975 | 6.85 years | +6.9% |
| 1976 | 6.63 years | -3.2% |
| 1977 | 6.74 years | +1.7% |
| 1978 | 6.95 years | +3.0% |
| 1979 | 7.37 years | +6.1% |
| 1980 | 7.14 years | -3.2% |
| 1981 | 7.15 years | +0.2% |
| 1982 | 7.18 years | +0.4% |
| 1983 | 7.41 years | +3.2% |
| 1984 | 7.44 years | +0.4% |
| 1985 | 6.92 years | -7.0% |
| 1986 | 6.9 years | -0.2% |
| 1987 | 6.15 years | -10.8% |
| 1988 | 6.49 years | +5.5% |
| 1992 | 6.06 years | -6.6% |
| 1993 | 6.27 years | +3.4% |
| 1994 | 6.19 years | -1.3% |
| 1995 | 6.34 years | +2.5% |
| 2007 | 7.03 years | +10.8% |
| 2008 | 7.66 years | +9.0% |
| 2009 | 7.76 years | +1.2% |
| 2010 | 7.75 years | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 8.37 years | +8.0% |
| 2012 | 8.22 years | -1.7% |
| 2013 | 8.52 years | +3.7% |
| 2014 | 8.7 years | +2.1% |
| 2015 | 8.65 years | -0.6% |
| 2021 | 10.53 years | +21.6% |
| 2023 | 10.39 years | -1.3% |
Democratic Republic of Congo compared with similar countries
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 10.39 years is above the median for low income countries, which is 7.74 years, 1.3× the median. (23 countries reporting)
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 10.39 years is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 10.03 years, 1.0× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 6.78 years | 6.41 years | 7.37 years | 9 |
| 1980s | 6.98 years | 6.15 years | 7.44 years | 9 |
| 1990s | 6.22 years | 6.06 years | 6.34 years | 4 |
| 2000s | 7.48 years | 7.03 years | 7.76 years | 3 |
| 2010s | 8.37 years | 7.75 years | 8.7 years | 6 |
| 2020s | 10.46 years | 10.39 years | 10.53 years | 2 |
Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo
More education data for Democratic Republic of Congo
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 621,578 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 1.99 million (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 410,532 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 427,300 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 7.93 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 21.15 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 7.35 % change on previous year (2021)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1999 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Democratic Republic of Congo was 10.39 years in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The highest recorded value was 10.53 years in 2021.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.06 years in 1992.
- How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes?
- Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 157th out of 213 countries with data for 2023.
- Is school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes rising or falling in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Over the last ten years it is up 21.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Democratic Republic of Congo data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release