Government expenditure on primary education as % of GDP in Eswatini

Eswatini: Government expenditure on primary education as % of GDP was 3.6% in 2014. ▲ Rising

Latest (2014)
3.6%
Change on year
up 7.5%
World rank
4th
of 152 countries
All-time high
3.6%
in 2014
All-time low
1.1%
in 1976
Years of data
27
1976–2014

Government expenditure on primary education as % of GDP in Eswatini, 1976–2014

12341976199520141976: 1.1 %1977: 1.1 %1978: 1.4 %1979: 2.2 %1980: 2.1 %1981: 3 %1982: 3.1 %1987: 2.1 %1988: 2.1 %1989: 1.7 %1990: 1.8 %1994: 1.4 %1995: 1.7 %1996: 1.8 %1999: 1.7 %2000: 1.9 %2001: 1.6 %2002: 1.7 %2003: 1.8 %2004: 2 %2005: 2.6 %2006: 2.6 %2008: 2.2 %2009: 2.7 %2010: 2.9 %2011: 3.3 %2014: 3.6 %

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

Eswatini recorded 3.6% for government expenditure on primary education as % of gdp in 2014. That is the highest value across all 27 years on record.

That represents a change of up 7.5% on the previous year and up 76.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, government expenditure on primary education as % of gdp in Eswatini peaked at 3.6% in 2014 and was at its lowest, 1.1%, in 1976.

Eswatini ranks 4th of 152 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.

Government expenditure on primary education as % of GDP in Eswatini, year by year

Annual values for Government expenditure on primary education as % of GDP (%) in Eswatini, 1976 to 2014.
Year % Change
1976 1.1%
1977 1.1% +1.2%
1978 1.4% +23.4%
1979 2.2% +65.6%
1980 2.1% -4.8%
1981 3.0% +38.2%
1982 3.1% +3.7%
1987 2.1% -30.9%
1988 2.1% -2.4%
1989 1.7% -16.9%
1990 1.8% +6.9%
1994 1.4% -24.2%
1995 1.7% +18.6%
1996 1.8% +7.8%
1999 1.7% -5.1%
2000 1.9% +15.4%
2001 1.6% -20.2%
2002 1.7% +7.6%
2003 1.8% +10.4%
2004 2.0% +10.1%
2005 2.6% +27.1%
2006 2.6% -1.1%
2008 2.2% -12.9%
2009 2.7% +21.4%
2010 2.9% +6.8%
2011 3.3% +15.8%
2014 3.6% +7.5%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 1.4% 1.1% 2.2% 4
1980s 2.3% 1.7% 3.1% 6
1990s 1.7% 1.4% 1.8% 5
2000s 2.1% 1.6% 2.7% 9
2010s 3.3% 2.9% 3.6% 3

Countries ranked near Eswatini

  1. 1 Kiribati 4.1% compare
  2. 2 Lesotho 3.9% compare
  3. 3 Cuba 3.7% compare
  4. 5 Togo 3.2% compare
  5. 6 Sierra Leone 3.0% compare
  6. 7 Zimbabwe 2.9% compare

See the full ranking of 152 places →

More reference data data for Eswatini

All data for Eswatini →

Frequently asked questions

What is government expenditure on primary education as % of gdp in Eswatini?
Government expenditure on primary education as % of gdp in Eswatini was 3.6% in 2014, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest government expenditure on primary education as % of gdp recorded in Eswatini?
The highest recorded value was 3.6% in 2014.
What is the lowest government expenditure on primary education as % of gdp recorded in Eswatini?
The lowest recorded value was 1.1% in 1976.
How does Eswatini rank for government expenditure on primary education as % of gdp?
Eswatini ranks 4th out of 152 countries with data for 2014.
Is government expenditure on primary education as % of gdp rising or falling in Eswatini?
Over the last ten years it is up 76.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Eswatini data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Government expenditure on primary education as % of GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Government expenditure on primary education as % of GDP in Eswatini. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 03 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/government-expenditure-on-primary-education-as-percent-of-gdp-percent/eswatini/

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About this data

Indicator
Government expenditure on primary education as % of GDP (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
152 places, 2,924 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Total general (local, regional and central) government expenditure on primary education (current, capital, and transfers), expressed as a percentage of GDP. It includes expenditure funded by transfers from international sources to government. Divide total government expenditure for a given level of education (ex. primary, secondary, or all levels combined) by the GDP, and multiply by 100. A higher percentage of GDP spent on education shows a higher government priority for education, but also a higher capacity of the government to raise revenues for public spending, in relation to the size of the country's economy. When interpreting this indicator however, one should keep in mind in some countries, the private sector and/or households may fund a higher proportion of total funding for education, thus making government expenditure appear lower than in other countries. Limitations: In some instances data on total public expenditure on education refers only to the Ministry of Education, excluding other ministries which may also spend a part of their budget on educational activities. For more information, consult the UNESCO Institute of Statistics website: http://www.uis.unesco.org/Education/