Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Belgium
Belgium: Government spending on education overall vs. primary education was 6.3% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Belgium, 1975–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Belgium recorded 6.3% for government spending on education overall vs. primary education in 2022.
That represents a change of down 1.6% on the previous year and down 4.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Belgium peaked at 6.8% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 3.0%, in 1995.
Belgium ranks 25th of 199 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 31 years of available data.
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Belgium, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 5.8% | — |
| 1976 | 5.7% | -0.6% |
| 1977 | 6.0% | +4.5% |
| 1978 | 5.4% | -9.2% |
| 1979 | 5.4% | -1.0% |
| 1980 | 5.3% | -1.3% |
| 1981 | 5.4% | +2.3% |
| 1982 | 5.3% | -2.2% |
| 1986 | 4.9% | -8.7% |
| 1987 | 4.6% | -5.7% |
| 1988 | 4.3% | -6.0% |
| 1993 | 5.4% | +24.9% |
| 1994 | 5.4% | +0.7% |
| 1995 | 3.0% | -44.8% |
| 1996 | 3.0% | +2.0% |
| 2005 | 5.8% | +90.1% |
| 2008 | 6.3% | +9.3% |
| 2009 | 6.4% | +1.6% |
| 2010 | 6.4% | +0.1% |
| 2011 | 6.4% | -0.9% |
| 2012 | 6.6% | +2.8% |
| 2013 | 6.6% | +0.5% |
| 2014 | 6.6% | -0.6% |
| 2015 | 6.5% | -1.4% |
| 2016 | 6.5% | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 6.4% | -0.6% |
| 2018 | 6.4% | -0.9% |
| 2019 | 6.3% | -1.0% |
| 2020 | 6.8% | +6.8% |
| 2021 | 6.4% | -5.5% |
| 2022 | 6.3% | -1.6% |
Belgium compared with similar countries
- Belgium's 6.3% is above the median for high income countries, which is 4.4%, 1.4× the median. (72 countries reporting)
- Belgium's 6.3% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 4.5%, 1.4× the median. (51 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Belgium 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.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | +90.1% | 3.0% | 5.8% |
| 1995 | -44.8% | 5.4% | 3.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.7% | 5.4% | 6.0% | 5 |
| 1980s | 5.0% | 4.3% | 5.4% | 6 |
| 1990s | 4.2% | 3.0% | 5.4% | 4 |
| 2000s | 6.2% | 5.8% | 6.4% | 3 |
| 2010s | 6.5% | 6.3% | 6.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.5% | 6.3% | 6.8% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Belgium
More reference data data for Belgium
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.9298 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.291 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.09 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.1382 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 2.09 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 3.12 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.93 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.61 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 10.4 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.7526 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Belgium?
- Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Belgium was 6.3% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in Belgium?
- The highest recorded value was 6.8% in 2020.
- What is the lowest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in Belgium?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.0% in 1995.
- How does Belgium rank for government spending on education overall vs. primary education?
- Belgium ranks 25th out of 199 countries with data for 2022.
- Is government spending on education overall vs. primary education rising or falling in Belgium?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Belgium data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Government spending on education overall vs. primary education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Total annual general government spending on all levels of education, expressed as a percentage of GDP.