School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes was 8.04 years in 2012. ◆ Volatile
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Ethiopia, 1971–2012
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2012, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Ethiopia stood at 8.04 years. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is up 0.7% on the previous year and up 58.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Ethiopia peaked at 8.04 years in 2012 and was at its lowest, 1.17 years, in 1971.
That places Ethiopia 173rd out of 186 countries with data for 2012, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Ethiopia, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 1.17 years | — |
| 1972 | 1.23 years | +5.5% |
| 1973 | 1.28 years | +4.0% |
| 1974 | 1.4 years | +9.2% |
| 1984 | 3.16 years | +125.5% |
| 1986 | 3.03 years | -4.0% |
| 1987 | 3.42 years | +12.9% |
| 1988 | 3.55 years | +3.7% |
| 1989 | 3.44 years | -3.2% |
| 1991 | 2.81 years | -18.3% |
| 1994 | 2.33 years | -16.9% |
| 1995 | 2.59 years | +11.2% |
| 1996 | 3.01 years | +16.0% |
| 1999 | 4 years | +32.9% |
| 2000 | 4.31 years | +7.8% |
| 2001 | 4.81 years | +11.6% |
| 2002 | 5.08 years | +5.6% |
| 2003 | 5.2 years | +2.4% |
| 2004 | 5.5 years | +5.7% |
| 2005 | 6.26 years | +13.9% |
| 2008 | 7.76 years | +23.9% |
| 2009 | 7.77 years | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 7.84 years | +0.8% |
| 2011 | 7.99 years | +1.9% |
| 2012 | 8.04 years | +0.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.27 years | 1.17 years | 1.4 years | 4 |
| 1980s | 3.32 years | 3.03 years | 3.55 years | 5 |
| 1990s | 2.95 years | 2.33 years | 4 years | 5 |
| 2000s | 5.84 years | 4.31 years | 7.77 years | 8 |
| 2010s | 7.96 years | 7.84 years | 8.04 years | 3 |
Countries ranked near Ethiopia
More education data for Ethiopia
- Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years), annual 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of secondary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), gaps filled 2,021 tertiary education (2022)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), annual growth 0.0498 % change on previous year (2012)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 338,716 (2024)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 4 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 57.9% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 38.8% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Ethiopia?
- School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Ethiopia was 8.04 years in 2012, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in Ethiopia?
- The highest recorded value was 8.04 years in 2012.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in Ethiopia?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.17 years in 1971.
- How does Ethiopia rank for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes?
- Ethiopia ranks 173rd out of 186 countries with data for 2012.
- Is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes rising or falling in Ethiopia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 58.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Ethiopia 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release