School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes was 5.78 years in 1998. ▲ Rising
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Papua New Guinea, 1972–1998
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 1998, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Papua New Guinea stood at 5.78 years. That is the highest value across all 6 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 8.0% on the previous year and up 18.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Papua New Guinea peaked at 5.78 years in 1998 and was at its lowest, 3.55 years, in 1972.
That places Papua New Guinea 185th out of 186 countries with data for 1998, putting it in the bottom quarter.
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Papua New Guinea, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 3.55 years | — |
| 1973 | 3.68 years | +3.6% |
| 1984 | 4.74 years | +28.8% |
| 1986 | 4.86 years | +2.7% |
| 1995 | 5.35 years | +10.1% |
| 1998 | 5.78 years | +8.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 3.61 years | 3.55 years | 3.68 years | 2 |
| 1980s | 4.8 years | 4.74 years | 4.86 years | 2 |
| 1990s | 5.57 years | 5.35 years | 5.78 years | 2 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
- 182 Niger 6.7 years compare
- 183 Sierra Leone 6.62 years compare
- 184 Central African Republic 6.32 years compare
- 186 Djibouti 4.05 years compare
More education data for Papua New Guinea
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 14,791 (2016)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 80,915 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 226,545 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 208,353 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 655,030 (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.65 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 10.31 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1593 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Papua New Guinea?
- School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Papua New Guinea was 5.78 years in 1998, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 5.78 years in 1998.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.55 years in 1972.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 185th out of 186 countries with data for 1998.
- Is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 18.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea 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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CSV · JSON — 6 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release