School life expectancy, tertiary, female in South Africa
South Africa: School life expectancy, tertiary, female was 1.48 years in 2023. ▲ Rising
School life expectancy, tertiary, female in South Africa, 1988–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school life expectancy, tertiary, female in South Africa is 1.48 years, measured in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.2% on the previous year and up 15.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, tertiary, female in South Africa peaked at 1.49 years in 2022 and was at its lowest, 0.4903 years, in 1988.
South Africa ranks 125th of 191 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
School life expectancy, tertiary, female in South Africa, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 0.4903 years | — |
| 1989 | 0.5329 years | +8.7% |
| 1990 | 0.5219 years | -2.1% |
| 1991 | 0.5567 years | +6.7% |
| 1992 | 0.5881 years | +5.6% |
| 1993 | 0.636 years | +8.1% |
| 1994 | 0.7946 years | +25.0% |
| 2002 | 0.8549 years | +7.6% |
| 2003 | 0.8865 years | +3.7% |
| 2004 | 0.9094 years | +2.6% |
| 2005 | 0.882 years | -3.0% |
| 2006 | 0.8645 years | -2.0% |
| 2007 | 0.9029 years | +4.4% |
| 2009 | 1.02 years | +12.8% |
| 2010 | 1.09 years | +7.1% |
| 2011 | 1.14 years | +4.9% |
| 2012 | 1.25 years | +9.3% |
| 2013 | 1.27 years | +1.9% |
| 2014 | 1.23 years | -3.4% |
| 2015 | 1.25 years | +2.0% |
| 2016 | 1.24 years | -1.5% |
| 2017 | 1.34 years | +8.4% |
| 2018 | 1.41 years | +5.2% |
| 2019 | 1.4 years | -0.6% |
| 2020 | 1.42 years | +1.7% |
| 2021 | 1.4 years | -1.5% |
| 2022 | 1.49 years | +6.6% |
| 2023 | 1.48 years | -1.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0.5116 years | 0.4903 years | 0.5329 years | 2 |
| 1990s | 0.6194 years | 0.5219 years | 0.7946 years | 5 |
| 2000s | 0.9026 years | 0.8549 years | 1.02 years | 7 |
| 2010s | 1.26 years | 1.09 years | 1.41 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.45 years | 1.4 years | 1.49 years | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 287,310 (2023)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 4 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 67.4% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 25.7% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 14 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 7 years (2025)
- Primary secondary enrollment completion rates, gaps filled 101.77 (2023)
- School enrollment, primary 101.8% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, tertiary, female in South Africa?
- School life expectancy, tertiary, female in South Africa was 1.48 years in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, tertiary, female recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 1.49 years in 2022.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, tertiary, female recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.4903 years in 1988.
- How does South Africa rank for school life expectancy, tertiary, female?
- South Africa ranks 125th out of 191 countries with data for 2023.
- Is school life expectancy, tertiary, female rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School life expectancy, tertiary, female (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release