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Theoretical duration of lower secondary education in Nigeria

Nigeria: Theoretical duration of lower secondary education was 3 years in 2020. ▼ Falling

Latest (2020)
3 years
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
81st
of 209 countries
All-time high
5 years
in 1970
All-time low
3 years
in 1986
Years of data
51
1970–2020

Theoretical duration of lower secondary education in Nigeria, 1970–2020

012345197019952020

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.

Analysis

Nigeria recorded 3 years for theoretical duration of lower secondary education in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 51 years on record.

That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, theoretical duration of lower secondary education in Nigeria peaked at 5 years in 1970 and was at its lowest, 3 years, in 1986.

That places Nigeria 81st out of 209 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 51 years of available data.

Theoretical duration of lower secondary education in Nigeria, year by year

Year years Change
1970 5 years —
1971 5 years +0.0%
1972 5 years +0.0%
1973 5 years +0.0%
1974 5 years +0.0%
1975 5 years +0.0%
1976 5 years +0.0%
1977 5 years +0.0%
1978 5 years +0.0%
1979 5 years +0.0%
1980 5 years +0.0%
1981 5 years +0.0%
1982 5 years +0.0%
1983 5 years +0.0%
1984 5 years +0.0%
1985 5 years +0.0%
1986 3 years -40.0%
1987 3 years +0.0%
1988 3 years +0.0%
1989 3 years +0.0%
1990 3 years +0.0%
1991 3 years +0.0%
1992 3 years +0.0%
1993 3 years +0.0%
1994 3 years +0.0%
1995 3 years +0.0%
1996 3 years +0.0%
1997 3 years +0.0%
1998 3 years +0.0%
1999 3 years +0.0%
2000 3 years +0.0%
2001 3 years +0.0%
2002 3 years +0.0%
2003 3 years +0.0%
2004 3 years +0.0%
2005 3 years +0.0%
2006 3 years +0.0%
2007 3 years +0.0%
2008 3 years +0.0%
2009 3 years +0.0%
2010 3 years +0.0%
2011 3 years +0.0%
2012 3 years +0.0%
2013 3 years +0.0%
2014 3 years +0.0%
2015 3 years +0.0%
2016 3 years +0.0%
2017 3 years +0.0%
2018 3 years +0.0%
2019 3 years +0.0%
2020 3 years +0.0%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 5 years 5 years 5 years 10
1980s 4.2 years 3 years 5 years 10
1990s 3 years 3 years 3 years 10
2000s 3 years 3 years 3 years 10
2010s 3 years 3 years 3 years 10
2020s 3 years 3 years 3 years 1

Countries ranked near Nigeria

  1. 81 Afghanistan 3 years compare
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  3. 81 Antigua and Barbuda 3 years compare
  4. 81 Argentina 3 years compare
  5. 81 Bahamas 3 years compare
  6. 81 Bahrain 3 years compare
  7. 81 Bangladesh 3 years compare
  8. 81 Barbados 3 years compare
  9. 81 Bermuda 3 years compare
  10. 81 Botswana 3 years compare
  11. 81 British Virgin Islands 3 years compare
  12. 81 Cape Verde 3 years compare
  13. 81 Cambodia 3 years compare
  14. 81 Canada 3 years compare
  15. 81 Cayman Islands 3 years compare
  16. 81 China 3 years compare
  17. 81 Costa Rica 3 years compare
  18. 81 Cuba 3 years compare
  19. 81 Cyprus 3 years compare
  20. 81 Denmark 3 years compare
  21. 81 Dominica 3 years compare
  22. 81 Ecuador 3 years compare
  23. 81 Egypt 3 years compare
  24. 81 El Salvador 3 years compare
  25. 81 Eritrea 3 years compare
  26. 81 Estonia 3 years compare
  27. 81 Eswatini 3 years compare
  28. 81 Finland 3 years compare
  29. 81 Gambia 3 years compare
  30. 81 Georgia 3 years compare
  31. 81 Ghana 3 years compare
  32. 81 Greece 3 years compare
  33. 81 Grenada 3 years compare
  34. 81 Guatemala 3 years compare
  35. 81 Guinea-Bissau 3 years compare
  36. 81 Guyana 3 years compare
  37. 81 Haiti 3 years compare
  38. 81 Honduras 3 years compare
  39. 81 Hong Kong, China 3 years compare
  40. 81 Iceland 3 years compare
  41. 81 India 3 years compare
  42. 81 Indonesia 3 years compare
  43. 81 Iraq 3 years compare
  44. 81 Ireland 3 years compare
  45. 81 Israel 3 years compare
  46. 81 Italy 3 years compare
  47. 81 Jamaica 3 years compare
  48. 81 Japan 3 years compare
  49. 81 Kiribati 3 years compare
  50. 81 Korea, Democratic People's Republic of 3 years compare
  51. 81 Republic of Korea 3 years compare
  52. 81 Latvia 3 years compare
  53. 81 Lebanon 3 years compare
  54. 81 Lesotho 3 years compare
  55. 81 Liberia 3 years compare
  56. 81 Libya 3 years compare
  57. 81 Luxembourg 3 years compare
  58. 81 Macau, China 3 years compare
  59. 81 Malaysia 3 years compare
  60. 81 Maldives 3 years compare
  61. 81 Mali 3 years compare
  62. 81 Malta 3 years compare
  63. 81 Mauritius 3 years compare
  64. 81 Mexico 3 years compare
  65. 81 Morocco 3 years compare
  66. 81 Mozambique 3 years compare
  67. 81 Namibia 3 years compare
  68. 81 Nepal 3 years compare
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  72. 81 Pakistan 3 years compare
  73. 81 Panama 3 years compare
  74. 81 Paraguay 3 years compare
  75. 81 Peru 3 years compare
  76. 81 Poland 3 years compare
  77. 81 Portugal 3 years compare
  78. 81 Puerto Rico 3 years compare
  79. 81 Qatar 3 years compare
  80. 81 Rwanda 3 years compare
  81. 81 San Marino 3 years compare
  82. 81 Sao Tome and Principe 3 years compare
  83. 81 Saudi Arabia 3 years compare
  84. 81 Seychelles 3 years compare
  85. 81 Sierra Leone 3 years compare
  86. 81 Slovenia 3 years compare
  87. 81 Solomon Islands 3 years compare
  88. 81 Spain 3 years compare
  89. 81 Saint Kitts and Nevis 3 years compare
  90. 81 Saint Lucia 3 years compare
  91. 81 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 3 years compare
  92. 81 Sudan 3 years compare
  93. 81 Sweden 3 years compare
  94. 81 Switzerland 3 years compare
  95. 81 Syrian Arab Republic 3 years compare
  96. 81 Thailand 3 years compare
  97. 81 Timor-Leste 3 years compare
  98. 81 Trinidad and Tobago 3 years compare
  99. 81 Tunisia 3 years compare
  100. 81 Turks and Caicos Islands 3 years compare
  101. 81 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 3 years compare
  102. 81 United States of America 3 years compare
  103. 81 Uruguay 3 years compare
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  105. 81 United States Virgin Islands 3 years compare
  106. 81 Yemen 3 years compare

See the full ranking of 209 places →

More education data for Nigeria

All data for Nigeria →

Frequently asked questions

What is theoretical duration of lower secondary education in Nigeria?
Theoretical duration of lower secondary education in Nigeria was 3 years in 2020, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest theoretical duration of lower secondary education recorded in Nigeria?
The highest recorded value was 5 years in 1970.
What is the lowest theoretical duration of lower secondary education recorded in Nigeria?
The lowest recorded value was 3 years in 1986.
How does Nigeria rank for theoretical duration of lower secondary education?
Nigeria ranks 81st out of 209 countries with data for 2020.
Is theoretical duration of lower secondary education rising or falling in Nigeria?
Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Nigeria data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Theoretical duration of lower secondary education (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Theoretical duration of lower secondary education in Nigeria. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 27 August 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/theoretical-duration-of-lower-secondary-education-years/nigeria/

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About this data

Indicator
Theoretical duration of lower secondary education (years)
Unit
years
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
209 places, 10,366 data points, 1970–2020
Last refreshed

Number of grades (years) in lower secondary education.