School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in SDG: Sub-saharan Africa
SDG: Sub-saharan Africa: School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female was 8.82 years in 2018. ▲ Rising
Latest (2018)
8.82 years
Change on year
up 0.9%
Rank
185th
of 221 groups
All-time high
8.82 years
in 2018
All-time low
3.5 years
in 1970
Years of data
49
1970–2018
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in SDG: Sub-saharan Africa, 1970–2018
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in SDG: Sub-saharan Africa is 8.82 years, measured in 2018. That is the highest value across all 49 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.9% on the previous year and up 12.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in SDG: Sub-saharan Africa peaked at 8.82 years in 2018 and was at its lowest, 3.5 years, in 1970.
SDG: Sub-saharan Africa ranks 185th of 221 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 49 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in SDG: Sub-saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 3.5 years | — |
| 1971 | 3.53 years | +1.0% |
| 1972 | 3.66 years | +3.5% |
| 1973 | 3.73 years | +2.1% |
| 1974 | 3.89 years | +4.2% |
| 1975 | 4.01 years | +3.1% |
| 1976 | 4.09 years | +1.9% |
| 1977 | 4.32 years | +5.8% |
| 1978 | 4.61 years | +6.7% |
| 1979 | 4.93 years | +6.9% |
| 1980 | 5.17 years | +4.8% |
| 1981 | 5.44 years | +5.1% |
| 1982 | 5.62 years | +3.4% |
| 1983 | 5.63 years | +0.2% |
| 1984 | 5.58 years | -0.9% |
| 1985 | 5.55 years | -0.7% |
| 1986 | 5.41 years | -2.4% |
| 1987 | 5.41 years | -0.1% |
| 1988 | 5.34 years | -1.1% |
| 1989 | 5.42 years | +1.5% |
| 1990 | 5.37 years | -1.0% |
| 1991 | 5.49 years | +2.4% |
| 1992 | 5.49 years | -0.1% |
| 1993 | 5.53 years | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 5.55 years | +0.3% |
| 1995 | 5.58 years | +0.6% |
| 1996 | 5.47 years | -2.0% |
| 1997 | 5.68 years | +3.9% |
| 1998 | 5.82 years | +2.5% |
| 1999 | 5.92 years | +1.6% |
| 2000 | 6.09 years | +3.0% |
| 2001 | 6.26 years | +2.7% |
| 2002 | 6.46 years | +3.2% |
| 2003 | 6.72 years | +4.0% |
| 2004 | 6.99 years | +4.1% |
| 2005 | 7.25 years | +3.7% |
| 2006 | 7.49 years | +3.2% |
| 2007 | 7.61 years | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 7.85 years | +3.2% |
| 2009 | 8.04 years | +2.5% |
| 2010 | 8.19 years | +1.8% |
| 2011 | 8.35 years | +2.0% |
| 2012 | 8.57 years | +2.6% |
| 2013 | 8.8 years | +2.7% |
| 2014 | 8.72 years | -0.9% |
| 2015 | 8.67 years | -0.6% |
| 2016 | 8.66 years | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 8.74 years | +0.9% |
| 2018 | 8.82 years | +0.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 4.03 years | 3.5 years | 4.93 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.46 years | 5.17 years | 5.63 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.59 years | 5.37 years | 5.92 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 7.08 years | 6.09 years | 8.04 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 8.61 years | 8.19 years | 8.82 years | 9 |
More education data for SDG: Sub-saharan Africa
- Enrolment in secondary education, both sexes (number), annual growth 1.49 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 40.94 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 1.68 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 37.60 million (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth rate 0.8202 % change on previous year (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 4.94 million (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 97.68 million (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth 1.02 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 93.62 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.31 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in SDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
- School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in SDG: Sub-saharan Africa was 8.82 years in 2018, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female recorded in SDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 8.82 years in 2018.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female recorded in SDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.5 years in 1970.
- How does SDG: Sub-saharan Africa rank for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female?
- SDG: Sub-saharan Africa ranks 185th out of 221 groups with data for 2018.
- Is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female rising or falling in SDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this SDG: Sub-saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 49 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release