Share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in in South Africa
South Africa: Share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in 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 education enrolled in 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% |
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
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 2.68 million (2023)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 2.97 % change on previous year (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 818,404 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual 3.28 % change on previous year (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 1.19 million (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) -2.55 % change on previous year (2023)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 225,583 (2023)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 61,727 (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 748,573 (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) -1.43 % change on previous year (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