Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Suriname
Suriname: Government spending on education overall vs. primary education was 2.9% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Suriname, 2015–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Suriname recorded 2.9% for government spending on education overall vs. primary education in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 9 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 16.5% on the previous year and down 48.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Suriname peaked at 6.8% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 2.9%, in 2023.
That places Suriname 156th out of 199 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Suriname, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 5.5% | — |
| 2016 | 5.6% | +1.9% |
| 2017 | 5.5% | -3.2% |
| 2018 | 4.9% | -9.8% |
| 2019 | 6.8% | +37.7% |
| 2020 | 4.6% | -32.4% |
| 2021 | 4.1% | -9.9% |
| 2022 | 3.4% | -16.9% |
| 2023 | 2.9% | -16.5% |
Suriname compared with similar countries
- Suriname's 2.9% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 4.2%, 67% of the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Suriname's 2.9% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 4.1%, 71% of the median. (39 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 5.7% | 4.9% | 6.8% | 5 |
| 2020s | 3.8% | 2.9% | 4.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Suriname
More reference data data for Suriname
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0324 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.0374 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.1239 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0109 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.1239 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1088 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.0507 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.2131 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.6104 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0594 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Suriname?
- Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Suriname 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 Suriname?
- The highest recorded value was 6.8% in 2019.
- What is the lowest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in Suriname?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.9% in 2023.
- How does Suriname rank for government spending on education overall vs. primary education?
- Suriname ranks 156th out of 199 countries with data for 2023.
- Is government spending on education overall vs. primary education rising or falling in Suriname?
- Over the last ten years it is down 48.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Suriname 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.