Share of all students in upper secondary … upper both sexes general in South Africa
South Africa: Share of all students in upper secondary … upper both sexes general was 91.1% in 2023. ▬ Flat
Latest (2023)
91.1%
Change on year
down 0.7%
World rank
74th
of 190 countries
All-time high
93.1%
in 1998
All-time low
87.8%
in 2018
Years of data
24
1998–2023
Share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in in South Africa, 1998–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in in South Africa stood at 91.1%.
That represents a change of down 0.7% on the previous year and down 0.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in in South Africa peaked at 93.1% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 87.8%, in 2018.
South Africa ranks 74th of 190 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
Share of all students in upper secondary … upper both sexes general in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 93.1% | — |
| 1999 | 93.0% | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 91.1% | -2.1% |
| 2001 | 90.2% | -0.9% |
| 2002 | 89.5% | -0.9% |
| 2003 | 89.9% | +0.5% |
| 2004 | 89.7% | -0.2% |
| 2005 | 91.5% | +2.1% |
| 2006 | 91.2% | -0.3% |
| 2007 | 90.9% | -0.3% |
| 2008 | 90.6% | -0.3% |
| 2009 | 90.3% | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 91.9% | +1.7% |
| 2011 | 91.8% | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 91.1% | -0.7% |
| 2015 | 88.5% | -2.9% |
| 2016 | 87.9% | -0.7% |
| 2017 | 88.4% | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 87.8% | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 88.1% | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 90.3% | +2.4% |
| 2021 | 90.3% | -0.0% |
| 2022 | 91.7% | +1.6% |
| 2023 | 91.1% | -0.7% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 91.1% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 80.4%, 1.1× the median. (54 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 91.1% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 91.3%, 100% of the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 93.0% | 93.0% | 93.1% | 2 |
| 2000s | 90.5% | 89.5% | 91.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 89.4% | 87.8% | 91.9% | 8 |
| 2020s | 90.8% | 90.3% | 91.7% | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 181,739 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 339,638 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 410,708 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 407,696 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 5.50 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 7.52 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.44 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.119 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in in South Africa?
- Share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in in South Africa was 91.1% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 93.1% in 1998.
- What is the lowest share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 87.8% in 2018.
- How does South Africa rank for share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in?
- South Africa ranks 74th out of 190 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in general programmes, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release