School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male (years) (School) in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe: School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male (years) (School) was 11.2 years in 2013. ▲ Rising
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male in Zimbabwe, 1970–2013
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male in Zimbabwe is 11.2 years, measured in 2013.
The figure is down 1.0% on the previous year and up 12.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male in Zimbabwe peaked at 11.75 years in 1986 and was at its lowest, 4.76 years, in 1979.
That places Zimbabwe 118th out of 193 countries with data for 2013, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 31 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male (years) (School) in Zimbabwe, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 5.91 years | — |
| 1971 | 5.41 years | -8.5% |
| 1972 | 5.67 years | +4.9% |
| 1973 | 5.7 years | +0.5% |
| 1974 | 5.77 years | +1.2% |
| 1975 | 5.75 years | -0.4% |
| 1976 | 5.67 years | -1.4% |
| 1977 | 5.5 years | -2.9% |
| 1978 | 4.95 years | -9.9% |
| 1979 | 4.76 years | -4.0% |
| 1981 | 8.98 years | +88.9% |
| 1982 | 10.08 years | +12.2% |
| 1983 | 10.78 years | +6.9% |
| 1984 | 11.53 years | +6.9% |
| 1985 | 11.57 years | +0.4% |
| 1986 | 11.75 years | +1.6% |
| 1987 | 10.97 years | -6.6% |
| 1988 | 10.66 years | -2.8% |
| 1989 | 10.56 years | -1.0% |
| 1990 | 9.69 years | -8.3% |
| 1991 | 10.48 years | +8.2% |
| 1992 | 10.01 years | -4.5% |
| 1995 | 10.25 years | +2.4% |
| 1996 | 10.27 years | +0.1% |
| 1999 | 10.38 years | +1.1% |
| 2000 | 10.42 years | +0.5% |
| 2001 | 10.79 years | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 10.3 years | -4.6% |
| 2003 | 9.95 years | -3.3% |
| 2012 | 11.31 years | +13.6% |
| 2013 | 11.2 years | -1.0% |
Zimbabwe compared with similar countries
- Zimbabwe's 11.2 years is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 10.78 years, 1.0× the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Zimbabwe's 11.2 years is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 10.19 years, 1.1× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male (years) (School) in Zimbabwe changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | +88.9% | 4.76 years | 8.98 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.51 years | 4.76 years | 5.91 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 10.76 years | 8.98 years | 11.75 years | 9 |
| 1990s | 10.18 years | 9.69 years | 10.48 years | 6 |
| 2000s | 10.37 years | 9.95 years | 10.79 years | 4 |
| 2010s | 11.25 years | 11.2 years | 11.31 years | 2 |
Countries ranked near Zimbabwe
More education data for Zimbabwe
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 90.38 (2024)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 89.48 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 42,585 (2013)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 12,514 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 328,055 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 322,698 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 957,461 (2013)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.94 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.4866 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male in Zimbabwe?
- School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male in Zimbabwe was 11.2 years in 2013, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male recorded in Zimbabwe?
- The highest recorded value was 11.75 years in 1986.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male recorded in Zimbabwe?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.76 years in 1979.
- How does Zimbabwe rank for school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male?
- Zimbabwe ranks 118th out of 193 countries with data for 2013.
- Is school life expectancy, primary and secondary, male rising or falling in Zimbabwe?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Zimbabwe 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.
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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.