Survival rate to the last grade of primary education, female in South Africa
South Africa: Survival rate to the last grade of primary education, female was 96.8% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Survival rate to the last grade of primary education, female in South Africa, 1990–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 96.8% for survival rate to the last grade of primary education, female in 2022.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.5% on the previous year and up 7.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, survival rate to the last grade of primary education, female in South Africa peaked at 99.3% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 56.3%, in 1999.
South Africa ranks 56th of 164 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 12 years of available data.
Survival rate to the last grade of primary education, female in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 72.9% | — |
| 1998 | 72.5% | -0.6% |
| 1999 | 56.3% | -22.3% |
| 2001 | 84.3% | +49.7% |
| 2002 | 82.3% | -2.4% |
| 2003 | 79.1% | -3.9% |
| 2015 | 90.3% | +14.1% |
| 2017 | 92.2% | +2.2% |
| 2018 | 99.3% | +7.7% |
| 2019 | 95.3% | -4.1% |
| 2020 | 97.2% | +2.0% |
| 2022 | 96.8% | -0.5% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 96.8% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 95.3%, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 96.8% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 69.2%, 1.4× the median. (42 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 67.2% | 56.3% | 72.9% | 3 |
| 2000s | 81.9% | 79.1% | 84.3% | 3 |
| 2010s | 94.3% | 90.3% | 99.3% | 4 |
| 2020s | 97.0% | 96.8% | 97.2% | 2 |
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 survival rate to the last grade of primary education, female in South Africa?
- Survival rate to the last grade of primary education, female in South Africa was 96.8% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest survival rate to the last grade of primary education, female recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 99.3% in 2018.
- What is the lowest survival rate to the last grade of primary education, female recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 56.3% in 1999.
- How does South Africa rank for survival rate to the last grade of primary education, female?
- South Africa ranks 56th out of 164 countries with data for 2022.
- Is survival rate to the last grade of primary education, female rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.2%. 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 Survival rate to the last grade of primary education, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release