School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Nigeria
Nigeria: School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes was 8.15 years in 2011. ▲ Rising
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Nigeria, 1977–2011
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
Nigeria recorded 8.15 years for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in 2011.
The figure is up 3.5% on the previous year and up 9.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Nigeria peaked at 8.71 years in 1984 and was at its lowest, 4.19 years, in 1977.
That places Nigeria 172nd out of 186 countries with data for 2011, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 20 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1977 | 4.19 years | — |
| 1978 | 5.26 years | +25.6% |
| 1979 | 6.22 years | +18.3% |
| 1980 | 6.72 years | +7.9% |
| 1981 | 7.42 years | +10.5% |
| 1982 | 8.25 years | +11.1% |
| 1983 | 8.52 years | +3.3% |
| 1984 | 8.71 years | +2.2% |
| 1985 | 8.38 years | -3.8% |
| 1986 | 7.17 years | -14.4% |
| 1987 | 6.93 years | -3.3% |
| 1989 | 6.41 years | -7.6% |
| 1999 | 7.41 years | +15.7% |
| 2000 | 7.77 years | +4.8% |
| 2001 | 7.46 years | -4.0% |
| 2002 | 7.75 years | +3.9% |
| 2004 | 8.6 years | +10.9% |
| 2005 | 8.64 years | +0.5% |
| 2010 | 7.88 years | -8.9% |
| 2011 | 8.15 years | +3.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.22 years | 4.19 years | 6.22 years | 3 |
| 1980s | 7.61 years | 6.41 years | 8.71 years | 9 |
| 1990s | 7.41 years | 7.41 years | 7.41 years | 1 |
| 2000s | 8.04 years | 7.46 years | 8.64 years | 5 |
| 2010s | 8.01 years | 7.88 years | 8.15 years | 2 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More education data for Nigeria
- 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 0.0497 % change on previous year (2014)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 913,305 (2021)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 1 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 5 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 56.4% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 40.5% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Nigeria?
- School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Nigeria was 8.15 years in 2011, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 8.71 years in 1984.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.19 years in 1977.
- How does Nigeria rank for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes?
- Nigeria ranks 172nd out of 186 countries with data for 2011.
- Is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nigeria 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