Government expenditure on primary education, constant US$ in South Korea

South Korea: Government expenditure on primary education, constant US$ was 21,622 millions in 2016. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2016)
21,622 millions
World rank
8th
of 143 countries
All-time high
21,622 millions
in 2016
All-time low
1,166 millions
in 1975
Years of data
27
1970–2016

Government expenditure on primary education, constant US$ in South Korea, 1970–2016

05.0k10.0k15.0k20.0k1970199320161970: 1.5k millions1971: 1.8k millions1972: 1.5k millions1973: 1.5k millions1975: 1.2k millions1976: 2.1k millions1977: 1.9k millions1979: 2.8k millions1980: 2.7k millions1981: 3.2k millions1982: 4.1k millions1983: 4.2k millions1984: 4.3k millions1985: 4.5k millions1986: 4.6k millions1987: 4.7k millions1988: 5.2k millions1989: 5.5k millions1990: 5.6k millions1991: 7.0k millions1992: 7.4k millions1993: 7.9k millions1994: 7.7k millions1995: 8.2k millions1998: 9.1k millions1999: 10.7k millions2016: 21.6k millions

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in millions.

Analysis

South Korea recorded 21,622 millions for government expenditure on primary education, constant us$ in 2016. That is the highest value across all 27 years on record.

Over the whole period, government expenditure on primary education, constant us$ in South Korea peaked at 21,622 millions in 2016 and was at its lowest, 1,166 millions, in 1975.

That places South Korea 8th out of 143 countries with data for 2016, putting it in the top 10%.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Government expenditure on primary education, constant US$ in South Korea, year by year

Annual values for Government expenditure on primary education, constant US$ (millions) in South Korea, 1970 to 2016.
Year millions Change
1970 1,533 millions —
1971 1,822 millions +18.9%
1972 1,548 millions -15.1%
1973 1,531 millions -1.1%
1975 1,166 millions -23.9%
1976 2,119 millions +81.7%
1977 1,940 millions -8.4%
1979 2,769 millions +42.7%
1980 2,673 millions -3.4%
1981 3,170 millions +18.6%
1982 4,141 millions +30.6%
1983 4,240 millions +2.4%
1984 4,319 millions +1.9%
1985 4,511 millions +4.5%
1986 4,568 millions +1.3%
1987 4,724 millions +3.4%
1988 5,183 millions +9.7%
1989 5,478 millions +5.7%
1990 5,555 millions +1.4%
1991 6,984 millions +25.7%
1992 7,442 millions +6.6%
1993 7,932 millions +6.6%
1994 7,732 millions -2.5%
1995 8,237 millions +6.5%
1998 9,140 millions +11.0%
1999 10,664 millions +16.7%
2016 21,622 millions +102.8%

South Korea compared with similar countries

  • South Korea's 21,622 millions is above the median for high income countries, which is 1,599 millions, 13.5× the median. (54 countries reporting)
  • South Korea's 21,622 millions is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 2,595 millions, 8.3× the median. (21 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Government expenditure on primary education, constant US$ in South Korea changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
2016 +102.8% 10,664 millions 21,622 millions
1976 +81.7% 1,166 millions 2,119 millions

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 1,804 millions 1,166 millions 2,769 millions 8
1980s 4,301 millions 2,673 millions 5,478 millions 10
1990s 7,961 millions 5,555 millions 10,664 millions 8
2010s 21,622 millions 21,622 millions 21,622 millions 1

Countries ranked near South Korea

  1. 5 France 30,026 millions compare
  2. 6 Germany 23,253 millions compare
  3. 7 Australia 22,665 millions compare
  4. 9 Italy 19,293 millions compare
  5. 10 India 18,756 millions compare
  6. 11 Mexico 17,262 millions compare

See the full ranking of 143 places →

More reference data data for South Korea

All data for South Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is government expenditure on primary education, constant us$ in South Korea?
Government expenditure on primary education, constant us$ in South Korea was 21,622 millions in 2016, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest government expenditure on primary education, constant us$ recorded in South Korea?
The highest recorded value was 21,622 millions in 2016.
What is the lowest government expenditure on primary education, constant us$ recorded in South Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 1,166 millions in 1975.
How does South Korea rank for government expenditure on primary education, constant us$?
South Korea ranks 8th out of 143 countries with data for 2016.
Where does this South Korea data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Government expenditure on primary education, constant US$ (millions). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Government expenditure on primary education, constant US$ in South Korea. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 29 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/government-expenditure-on-primary-education-constant-us-millions/korea-rep/

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About this data

Indicator
Government expenditure on primary education, constant US$ (millions)
Unit
millions
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
143 places, 2,788 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Total general (local, regional and central) government expenditure on primary education (current, capital, and transfers) in millions US$ in constant value (taking into account inflation). It includes expenditure funded by transfers from international sources to government. Total government expenditure for a given level of education (e.g. primary, secondary, or all levels combined) in national currency is converted to US$, and where it is expressed in constant value, uses a GDP deflator to account for inflation. The constant prices base year is normally three years before the year of the data release. For example, in the July 2017 data release, constant US$ values are expressed in 2014 prices. Limitations: In some instances data on total government 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/