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

South Africa: Government expenditure on primary education, constant US$ was 7,388 millions in 2019. ▲ Rising

Latest (2019)
7,388 millions
Change on year
up 3.0%
World rank
23rd
of 143 countries
All-time high
7,388 millions
in 2019
All-time low
4,068 millions
in 2003
Years of data
18
1999–2019

Government expenditure on primary education, constant US$ in South Africa, 1999–2019

02.0k4.0k6.0k8.0k1999200920191999: 4.7k millions2000: 4.5k millions2001: 4.3k millions2002: 4.3k millions2003: 4.1k millions2004: 4.2k millions2005: 4.7k millions2006: 5.2k millions2007: 5.0k millions2008: 5.0k millions2009: 5.6k millions2010: 6.2k millions2011: 6.4k millions2012: 7.0k millions2014: 6.7k millions2017: 7.0k millions2018: 7.2k millions2019: 7.4k millions

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in millions.

Analysis

South Africa recorded 7,388 millions for government expenditure on primary education, constant us$ in 2019. That is the highest value across all 18 years on record.

The figure is up 3.0% on the previous year and up 31.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, government expenditure on primary education, constant us$ in South Africa peaked at 7,388 millions in 2019 and was at its lowest, 4,068 millions, in 2003.

South Africa ranks 23rd of 143 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 18 years of available data.

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

Annual values for Government expenditure on primary education, constant US$ (millions) in South Africa, 1999 to 2019.
Year millions Change
1999 4,665 millions
2000 4,519 millions -3.1%
2001 4,300 millions -4.8%
2002 4,325 millions +0.6%
2003 4,068 millions -6.0%
2004 4,233 millions +4.1%
2005 4,694 millions +10.9%
2006 5,200 millions +10.8%
2007 5,048 millions -2.9%
2008 5,012 millions -0.7%
2009 5,628 millions +12.3%
2010 6,242 millions +10.9%
2011 6,392 millions +2.4%
2012 6,954 millions +8.8%
2014 6,719 millions -3.4%
2017 7,045 millions +4.9%
2018 7,173 millions +1.8%
2019 7,388 millions +3.0%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 4,665 millions 4,665 millions 4,665 millions 1
2000s 4,703 millions 4,068 millions 5,628 millions 10
2010s 6,845 millions 6,242 millions 7,388 millions 7

Countries ranked near South Africa

  1. 20 Belgium 7,681 millions compare
  2. 21 Poland 7,577 millions compare
  3. 22 Norway 7,409 millions compare
  4. 24 Thailand 6,900 millions compare
  5. 25 Denmark 6,364 millions compare
  6. 26 Iran, Islamic Republic of 5,673 millions compare

See the full ranking of 143 places →

More reference data data for South Africa

All data for South Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is government expenditure on primary education, constant us$ in South Africa?
Government expenditure on primary education, constant us$ in South Africa was 7,388 millions in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest government expenditure on primary education, constant us$ recorded in South Africa?
The highest recorded value was 7,388 millions in 2019.
What is the lowest government expenditure on primary education, constant us$ recorded in South Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 4,068 millions in 2003.
How does South Africa rank for government expenditure on primary education, constant us$?
South Africa ranks 23rd out of 143 countries with data for 2019.
Is government expenditure on primary education, constant us$ rising or falling in South Africa?
Over the last ten years it is up 31.3%. 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 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 Africa. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 25 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/government-expenditure-on-primary-education-constant-us-millions/south-africa/

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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/