Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Samoa
Samoa: Government spending on education overall vs. primary education was 5.5% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Samoa, 1999–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2024, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Samoa stood at 5.5%.
The figure is down 10.7% on the previous year and up 0.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Samoa peaked at 6.2% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 3.6%, in 2000.
Samoa ranks 38th of 199 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 19 years of available data.
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Samoa, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 4.0% | — |
| 2000 | 3.6% | -9.6% |
| 2001 | 4.0% | +9.5% |
| 2002 | 3.9% | -0.9% |
| 2008 | 5.1% | +29.9% |
| 2011 | 4.8% | -6.7% |
| 2012 | 4.9% | +2.5% |
| 2013 | 4.6% | -5.7% |
| 2014 | 5.4% | +17.3% |
| 2015 | 4.4% | -18.3% |
| 2016 | 4.0% | -10.0% |
| 2017 | 4.2% | +5.2% |
| 2018 | 4.5% | +6.8% |
| 2019 | 4.6% | +2.5% |
| 2020 | 4.5% | -1.8% |
| 2021 | 5.2% | +15.8% |
| 2022 | 6.2% | +18.1% |
| 2023 | 6.1% | -0.8% |
| 2024 | 5.5% | -10.7% |
Samoa compared with similar countries
- Samoa's 5.5% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 4.2%, 1.3× the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Samoa's 5.5% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 4.2%, 1.3× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 4.0% | 4.0% | 4.0% | 1 |
| 2000s | 4.2% | 3.6% | 5.1% | 4 |
| 2010s | 4.6% | 4.0% | 5.4% | 9 |
| 2020s | 5.5% | 4.5% | 6.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Samoa
More reference data data for Samoa
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.023 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.0165 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.0396 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.0396 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.077 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.0626 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.0918 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.2319 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Burning - Crop residues 0 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.1693 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Samoa?
- Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Samoa was 5.5% in 2024, 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 Samoa?
- The highest recorded value was 6.2% in 2022.
- What is the lowest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in Samoa?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.6% in 2000.
- How does Samoa rank for government spending on education overall vs. primary education?
- Samoa ranks 38th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is government spending on education overall vs. primary education rising or falling in Samoa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Samoa 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 — 19 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.