Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Serbia
Serbia: Government spending on education overall vs. primary education was 3.4% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Serbia, 2007–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2023, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Serbia stood at 3.4%.
The figure is up 10.4% on the previous year and down 16.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Serbia peaked at 4.3% in 2009 and was at its lowest, 3.1%, in 2022.
That places Serbia 130th out of 199 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 10 years of available data.
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Serbia, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 4.0% | — |
| 2009 | 4.3% | +6.5% |
| 2011 | 4.1% | -5.5% |
| 2016 | 3.5% | -14.0% |
| 2017 | 3.6% | +1.8% |
| 2018 | 3.4% | -3.6% |
| 2019 | 3.5% | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 3.1% | -9.0% |
| 2022 | 3.1% | -2.0% |
| 2023 | 3.4% | +10.4% |
Serbia compared with similar countries
- Serbia's 3.4% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 4.2%, 80% of the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Serbia's 3.4% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 4.5%, 76% of the median. (51 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 4.2% | 4.0% | 4.3% | 2 |
| 2010s | 3.6% | 3.4% | 4.1% | 5 |
| 2020s | 3.2% | 3.1% | 3.4% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Serbia
More reference data data for Serbia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.6055 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.3321 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 3.36 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.3467 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 3.36 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 2.03 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.44 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 15.2 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.89 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Serbia?
- Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Serbia was 3.4% 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 Serbia?
- The highest recorded value was 4.3% in 2009.
- What is the lowest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in Serbia?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.1% in 2022.
- How does Serbia rank for government spending on education overall vs. primary education?
- Serbia ranks 130th out of 199 countries with data for 2023.
- Is government spending on education overall vs. primary education rising or falling in Serbia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 16.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Serbia 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 — 10 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.