School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male in South Africa
South Africa: School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male was 11.92 years in 2018. ▲ Rising
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male in South Africa, 1989–2018
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2018, school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male in South Africa stood at 11.92 years.
That represents a change of down 1.9% on the previous year and down 1.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male in South Africa peaked at 13.05 years in 2015 and was at its lowest, 10.4 years, in 1989.
South Africa ranks 77th of 193 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male in South Africa, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 10.4 years | — |
| 1990 | 10.5 years | +0.9% |
| 1991 | 11.06 years | +5.4% |
| 1994 | 11.92 years | +7.8% |
| 1998 | 11.72 years | -1.7% |
| 1999 | 11.71 years | -0.0% |
| 2000 | 11.21 years | -4.3% |
| 2001 | 11.22 years | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 11.39 years | +1.5% |
| 2003 | 11.54 years | +1.3% |
| 2004 | 11.73 years | +1.7% |
| 2005 | 11.76 years | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 11.95 years | +1.6% |
| 2007 | 12.17 years | +1.8% |
| 2008 | 12.08 years | -0.7% |
| 2009 | 12.07 years | -0.1% |
| 2010 | 12.02 years | -0.4% |
| 2011 | 12.06 years | +0.4% |
| 2012 | 12.18 years | +1.0% |
| 2014 | 12.47 years | +2.4% |
| 2015 | 13.05 years | +4.6% |
| 2016 | 12.43 years | -4.8% |
| 2017 | 12.15 years | -2.2% |
| 2018 | 11.92 years | -1.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 10.4 years | 10.4 years | 10.4 years | 1 |
| 1990s | 11.38 years | 10.5 years | 11.92 years | 5 |
| 2000s | 11.71 years | 11.21 years | 12.17 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 12.29 years | 11.92 years | 13.05 years | 8 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- 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)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 7.52 million (2023)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth -1.44 % change on previous year (2023)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), per capita 0.119 units per person (2023)
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 3.65 million (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male in South Africa?
- School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male in South Africa was 11.92 years in 2018, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 13.05 years in 2015.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.4 years in 1989.
- How does South Africa rank for school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male?
- South Africa ranks 77th out of 193 countries with data for 2018.
- Is school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.3%. 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, published as part of School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Number of years a person of school entrance age can expect to spend within the specified level of education. For a child of a certain age a, the school life expectancy is calculated as the sum of the age specific enrolment rates for the levels of education specified. The part of the enrolment that is not distributed by age is divided by the school-age population for the level of education they are enrolled in, and multiplied by the duration of that level of education. The result is then added to the sum of the age-specific enrolment rates. A relatively high SLE indicates greater probability for children to spend more years in education and higher overall retention within the education system. It must be noted that the expected number of years does not necessarily coincide with the expected number of grades of education completed, because of repetition. Since school life expectancy is an average based on participation in different levels of education, the expected number of years of schooling may be pulled down by the magnitude of children who never go to school. Those children who are in school may benefit from many more years of education than the average.