Share of population with no formal education in Ghana
Ghana: Share of population with no formal education was 15.9% in 2020. ▼ Falling
Share of population with no formal education in Ghana, 1870–2020
Source: Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of population with no formal education in Ghana is 15.9%, measured in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 31 years on record.
The figure is down 37.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population with no formal education in Ghana peaked at 99.8% in 1870 and was at its lowest, 15.9%, in 2020.
That places Ghana 22nd out of 111 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 31 years of available data.
Share of population with no formal education in Ghana, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 99.8% | — |
| 1875 | 99.7% | -0.1% |
| 1880 | 99.6% | -0.1% |
| 1885 | 99.5% | -0.1% |
| 1890 | 99.3% | -0.2% |
| 1895 | 99.1% | -0.2% |
| 1900 | 98.8% | -0.3% |
| 1905 | 97.5% | -1.3% |
| 1910 | 96.2% | -1.3% |
| 1915 | 95.3% | -0.9% |
| 1920 | 93.6% | -1.8% |
| 1925 | 92.6% | -1.1% |
| 1930 | 91.6% | -1.1% |
| 1935 | 89.9% | -1.9% |
| 1940 | 88.9% | -1.1% |
| 1945 | 88.2% | -0.8% |
| 1950 | 86.3% | -2.2% |
| 1955 | 84.3% | -2.3% |
| 1960 | 77.9% | -7.6% |
| 1965 | 70.7% | -9.2% |
| 1970 | 62.5% | -11.6% |
| 1975 | 54.6% | -12.6% |
| 1980 | 48.9% | -10.4% |
| 1985 | 43.0% | -12.1% |
| 1990 | 38.8% | -9.8% |
| 1995 | 36.1% | -7.0% |
| 2000 | 32.9% | -8.9% |
| 2005 | 28.6% | -13.1% |
| 2010 | 25.4% | -11.2% |
| 2015 | 20.7% | -18.5% |
| 2020 | 15.9% | -23.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 99.8% | 99.7% | 99.8% | 2 |
| 1880s | 99.5% | 99.5% | 99.6% | 2 |
| 1890s | 99.2% | 99.1% | 99.3% | 2 |
| 1900s | 98.2% | 97.5% | 98.8% | 2 |
| 1910s | 95.8% | 95.3% | 96.2% | 2 |
| 1920s | 93.1% | 92.6% | 93.6% | 2 |
| 1930s | 90.8% | 89.9% | 91.6% | 2 |
| 1940s | 88.6% | 88.2% | 88.9% | 2 |
| 1950s | 85.3% | 84.3% | 86.3% | 2 |
| 1960s | 74.3% | 70.7% | 77.9% | 2 |
| 1970s | 58.5% | 54.6% | 62.5% | 2 |
| 1980s | 46.0% | 43.0% | 48.9% | 2 |
| 1990s | 37.5% | 36.1% | 38.8% | 2 |
| 2000s | 30.8% | 28.6% | 32.9% | 2 |
| 2010s | 23.0% | 20.7% | 25.4% | 2 |
| 2020s | 15.9% | 15.9% | 15.9% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
More education data for Ghana
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 2.46 million (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), annual growth rate -0.6091 % change on previous year (2022)
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), per capita 0.0714 units per person (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 2.53 million (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.89 % change on previous year (2022)
- Enrolment in primary education, male (number), per capita 0.0734 units per person (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 3.33 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, both sexes (number), annual growth 3.99 % change on previous year (2022)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 122,558 (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth rate -6.95 % change on previous year (2021)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population with no formal education in Ghana?
- Share of population with no formal education in Ghana was 15.9% in 2020, according to Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of population with no formal education recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 99.8% in 1870.
- What is the lowest share of population with no formal education recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 15.9% in 2020.
- How does Ghana rank for share of population with no formal education?
- Ghana ranks 22nd out of 111 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of population with no formal education rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is down 37.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of population with no formal education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 31 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The share of adults aged between 15 and 64 years old with no formal education.