Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Nicaragua
Nicaragua: Government spending on education overall vs. primary education was 2.9% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Nicaragua, 1970–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Nicaragua is 2.9%, measured in 2023.
The figure is down 24.5% on the previous year and down 29.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Nicaragua peaked at 5.4% in 1987 and was at its lowest, 2.0%, in 1970.
Nicaragua ranks 155th of 199 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 20 years of available data.
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Nicaragua, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 2.0% | — |
| 1971 | 2.5% | +22.2% |
| 1987 | 5.4% | +114.8% |
| 1992 | 3.0% | -44.2% |
| 1998 | 2.2% | -25.4% |
| 1999 | 2.9% | +31.3% |
| 2000 | 3.0% | +2.7% |
| 2002 | 2.4% | -20.3% |
| 2003 | 2.4% | +1.3% |
| 2010 | 4.5% | +85.1% |
| 2014 | 4.1% | -8.9% |
| 2015 | 4.1% | -0.1% |
| 2016 | 4.1% | +0.1% |
| 2017 | 4.4% | +6.8% |
| 2018 | 4.5% | +2.7% |
| 2019 | 4.6% | +2.8% |
| 2020 | 4.6% | -0.4% |
| 2021 | 4.1% | -10.8% |
| 2022 | 3.8% | -7.0% |
| 2023 | 2.9% | -24.5% |
Nicaragua compared with similar countries
- Nicaragua's 2.9% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 4.0%, 71% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Nicaragua's 2.9% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 4.1%, 71% of the median. (39 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Nicaragua 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | +114.8% | 2.5% | 5.4% |
| 2010 | +85.1% | 2.4% | 4.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2.3% | 2.0% | 2.5% | 2 |
| 1980s | 5.4% | 5.4% | 5.4% | 1 |
| 1990s | 2.7% | 2.2% | 3.0% | 3 |
| 2000s | 2.6% | 2.4% | 3.0% | 3 |
| 2010s | 4.3% | 4.1% | 4.6% | 7 |
| 2020s | 3.8% | 2.9% | 4.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Nicaragua
More reference data data for Nicaragua
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.4575 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.72 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.76 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0819 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 2.76 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.53 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.4557 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 9.61 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 14.12 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.4457 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Nicaragua?
- Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Nicaragua was 2.9% in 2023, 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 Nicaragua?
- The highest recorded value was 5.4% in 1987.
- What is the lowest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in Nicaragua?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.0% in 1970.
- How does Nicaragua rank for government spending on education overall vs. primary education?
- Nicaragua ranks 155th out of 199 countries with data for 2023.
- Is government spending on education overall vs. primary education rising or falling in Nicaragua?
- Over the last ten years it is down 29.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nicaragua 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 20 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total annual general government spending on all levels of education, expressed as a percentage of GDP.