School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405)
ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405): School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes was 9.85 years in 2021. ▲ Rising
Latest (2021)
9.85 years
Change on year
up 0.1%
Rank
160th
of 221 groups
All-time high
9.85 years
in 2021
All-time low
4.62 years
in 1970
Years of data
52
1970–2021
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405), 1970–2021
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405) is 9.85 years, measured in 2021. That is the highest value across all 52 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.1% on the previous year and up 7.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405) peaked at 9.85 years in 2021 and was at its lowest, 4.62 years, in 1970.
That places ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405) 160th out of 221 groups with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 52 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405), year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 4.62 years | — |
| 1971 | 4.62 years | +0.1% |
| 1972 | 4.75 years | +2.9% |
| 1973 | 4.83 years | +1.6% |
| 1974 | 4.95 years | +2.6% |
| 1975 | 5.12 years | +3.4% |
| 1976 | 5.25 years | +2.6% |
| 1977 | 5.45 years | +3.8% |
| 1978 | 5.72 years | +5.0% |
| 1979 | 6.05 years | +5.7% |
| 1980 | 6.31 years | +4.3% |
| 1981 | 6.52 years | +3.3% |
| 1982 | 6.73 years | +3.3% |
| 1983 | 6.83 years | +1.4% |
| 1984 | 6.87 years | +0.5% |
| 1985 | 6.76 years | -1.6% |
| 1986 | 6.61 years | -2.2% |
| 1987 | 6.58 years | -0.5% |
| 1988 | 6.59 years | +0.3% |
| 1989 | 6.57 years | -0.4% |
| 1990 | 6.53 years | -0.7% |
| 1991 | 6.61 years | +1.3% |
| 1992 | 6.55 years | -0.9% |
| 1993 | 6.6 years | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 6.71 years | +1.5% |
| 1995 | 6.71 years | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 6.64 years | -0.9% |
| 1997 | 6.86 years | +3.3% |
| 1998 | 7.02 years | +2.4% |
| 1999 | 7.09 years | +1.0% |
| 2000 | 7.28 years | +2.6% |
| 2001 | 7.4 years | +1.7% |
| 2002 | 7.61 years | +2.8% |
| 2003 | 7.84 years | +3.1% |
| 2004 | 8.08 years | +3.1% |
| 2005 | 8.34 years | +3.2% |
| 2006 | 8.52 years | +2.2% |
| 2007 | 8.55 years | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 8.74 years | +2.2% |
| 2009 | 8.92 years | +2.0% |
| 2010 | 9.04 years | +1.3% |
| 2011 | 9.21 years | +1.9% |
| 2012 | 9.37 years | +1.8% |
| 2013 | 9.57 years | +2.1% |
| 2014 | 9.49 years | -0.8% |
| 2015 | 9.45 years | -0.4% |
| 2016 | 9.47 years | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 9.55 years | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 9.63 years | +0.9% |
| 2019 | 9.74 years | +1.1% |
| 2020 | 9.85 years | +1.1% |
| 2021 | 9.85 years | +0.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.14 years | 4.62 years | 6.05 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 6.64 years | 6.31 years | 6.87 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 6.73 years | 6.53 years | 7.09 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 8.13 years | 7.28 years | 8.92 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 9.45 years | 9.04 years | 9.74 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.85 years | 9.85 years | 9.85 years | 2 |
Countries ranked near ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405)
More education data for ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 1.99 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number) 1.42 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 9.98 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 2.62 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 9.24 million (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 2.94 million (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 3.29 million (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), annual growth rate 0.8094 % change on previous year (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), annual growth rate 2.31 % change on previous year (2024)
- Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general 92.0% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405)?
- School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405) was 9.85 years in 2021, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405)?
- The highest recorded value was 9.85 years in 2021.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405)?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.62 years in 1970.
- How does ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405) rank for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes?
- ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405) ranks 160th out of 221 groups with data for 2021.
- Is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes rising or falling in ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this ESCAP: Africa (afr) (unsdcode:98405) data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release