School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes (years) in Suriname
Suriname: School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes (years) was 9.18 years in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
9.18 years
Change on year
down 21.9%
World rank
184th
of 213 countries
All-time high
12.62 years
in 2016
All-time low
9.18 years
in 2023
Years of data
43
1971–2023
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Suriname, 1971–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
Suriname recorded 9.18 years for school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 43 years on record.
That represents a change of down 21.9% on the previous year and down 19.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Suriname peaked at 12.62 years in 2016 and was at its lowest, 9.18 years, in 2023.
Suriname ranks 184th of 213 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 43 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes (years) in Suriname, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 9.78 years | — |
| 1972 | 9.38 years | -4.1% |
| 1973 | 9.84 years | +4.9% |
| 1974 | 10.23 years | +4.0% |
| 1975 | 10.27 years | +0.4% |
| 1976 | 9.6 years | -6.5% |
| 1977 | 10.62 years | +10.6% |
| 1978 | 10.85 years | +2.2% |
| 1979 | 11.15 years | +2.8% |
| 1980 | 11.17 years | +0.1% |
| 1981 | 9.62 years | -13.8% |
| 1982 | 10.53 years | +9.5% |
| 1983 | 10.67 years | +1.3% |
| 1984 | 10.78 years | +1.0% |
| 1985 | 11.22 years | +4.1% |
| 1986 | 11.62 years | +3.6% |
| 1987 | 10.71 years | -7.9% |
| 1988 | 10.68 years | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 10.96 years | +2.6% |
| 1990 | 10.2 years | -7.0% |
| 1991 | 10 years | -2.0% |
| 1992 | 11.44 years | +14.5% |
| 1993 | 11.2 years | -2.1% |
| 2001 | 10.57 years | -5.6% |
| 2002 | 10.61 years | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 11.17 years | +5.3% |
| 2006 | 11.17 years | -0.0% |
| 2007 | 10.97 years | -1.7% |
| 2008 | 11.31 years | +3.1% |
| 2009 | 11.29 years | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 11.5 years | +1.9% |
| 2011 | 11.23 years | -2.3% |
| 2012 | 11.31 years | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 11.35 years | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 11.26 years | -0.8% |
| 2015 | 11.64 years | +3.3% |
| 2016 | 12.62 years | +8.5% |
| 2018 | 11.38 years | -9.8% |
| 2019 | 12.28 years | +8.0% |
| 2020 | 11.26 years | -8.3% |
| 2021 | 10.32 years | -8.4% |
| 2022 | 11.75 years | +13.9% |
| 2023 | 9.18 years | -21.9% |
Suriname compared with similar countries
- Suriname's 9.18 years is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 11.53 years, 80% of the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Suriname's 9.18 years is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 11.3 years, 81% of the median. (39 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 10.19 years | 9.38 years | 11.15 years | 9 |
| 1980s | 10.8 years | 9.62 years | 11.62 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 10.71 years | 10 years | 11.44 years | 4 |
| 2000s | 11.01 years | 10.57 years | 11.31 years | 7 |
| 2010s | 11.62 years | 11.23 years | 12.62 years | 9 |
| 2020s | 10.63 years | 9.18 years | 11.75 years | 4 |
Countries ranked near Suriname
- 181 San Marino 9.5 years compare
- 182 Benin 9.47 years compare
- 183 El Salvador 9.34 years compare
- 185 Guatemala 9.08 years compare
- 186 Guinea-Bissau 8.9 years compare
- 187 Lebanon 8.73 years compare
More education data for Suriname
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 4,520 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 9,366 (2021)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 9,117 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 8,643 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 63,941 (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 60,612 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 10.8 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0955 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Suriname?
- School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Suriname was 9.18 years in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes recorded in Suriname?
- The highest recorded value was 12.62 years in 2016.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes recorded in Suriname?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.18 years in 2023.
- How does Suriname rank for school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes?
- Suriname ranks 184th out of 213 countries with data for 2023.
- Is school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes rising or falling in Suriname?
- Over the last ten years it is down 19.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Suriname 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 — 43 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release