Share of population with no formal education in Malawi
Malawi: Share of population with no formal education was 8.2% in 2020. ▼ Falling
Share of population with no formal education in Malawi, 1870–2020
Source: Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2020, share of population with no formal education in Malawi stood at 8.2%. That is the lowest value across all 31 years on record.
The figure is down 47.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population with no formal education in Malawi peaked at 100.0% in 1870 and was at its lowest, 8.2%, in 2020.
That places Malawi 35th out of 111 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 31 years of available data.
Share of population with no formal education in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 100.0% | — |
| 1875 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1880 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1885 | 99.9% | -0.1% |
| 1890 | 99.9% | +0.0% |
| 1895 | 99.8% | -0.1% |
| 1900 | 99.7% | -0.1% |
| 1905 | 99.5% | -0.2% |
| 1910 | 95.2% | -4.3% |
| 1915 | 91.3% | -4.1% |
| 1920 | 88.3% | -3.3% |
| 1925 | 84.8% | -4.0% |
| 1930 | 81.4% | -4.0% |
| 1935 | 77.7% | -4.5% |
| 1940 | 73.9% | -4.9% |
| 1945 | 69.8% | -5.5% |
| 1950 | 65.0% | -6.9% |
| 1955 | 63.4% | -2.5% |
| 1960 | 62.0% | -2.2% |
| 1965 | 59.3% | -4.4% |
| 1970 | 49.6% | -16.4% |
| 1975 | 47.9% | -3.4% |
| 1980 | 48.5% | +1.3% |
| 1985 | 47.5% | -2.1% |
| 1990 | 43.3% | -8.8% |
| 1995 | 40.3% | -6.9% |
| 2000 | 33.0% | -18.1% |
| 2005 | 22.3% | -32.4% |
| 2010 | 15.7% | -29.6% |
| 2015 | 11.8% | -24.8% |
| 2020 | 8.2% | -30.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1880s | 100.0% | 99.9% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1890s | 99.8% | 99.8% | 99.9% | 2 |
| 1900s | 99.6% | 99.5% | 99.7% | 2 |
| 1910s | 93.2% | 91.3% | 95.2% | 2 |
| 1920s | 86.5% | 84.8% | 88.3% | 2 |
| 1930s | 79.6% | 77.7% | 81.4% | 2 |
| 1940s | 71.8% | 69.8% | 73.9% | 2 |
| 1950s | 64.2% | 63.4% | 65.0% | 2 |
| 1960s | 60.6% | 59.3% | 62.0% | 2 |
| 1970s | 48.8% | 47.9% | 49.6% | 2 |
| 1980s | 48.0% | 47.5% | 48.5% | 2 |
| 1990s | 41.8% | 40.3% | 43.3% | 2 |
| 2000s | 27.6% | 22.3% | 33.0% | 2 |
| 2010s | 13.8% | 11.8% | 15.7% | 2 |
| 2020s | 8.2% | 8.2% | 8.2% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More education data for Malawi
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 566,616 (2023)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 5.16 % change on previous year (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 94,991 (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 16.86 % change on previous year (2022)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 41,351 (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 46,483 (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 40,807 (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 21.25 % change on previous year (2022)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 54,184 (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number) 13.94 % change on previous year (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population with no formal education in Malawi?
- Share of population with no formal education in Malawi was 8.2% 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 Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 100.0% in 1870.
- What is the lowest share of population with no formal education recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.2% in 2020.
- How does Malawi rank for share of population with no formal education?
- Malawi ranks 35th out of 111 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of population with no formal education rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 47.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi 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.
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About this data
The share of adults aged between 15 and 64 years old with no formal education.