Statizoid

School life expectancy, primary, female (years) by country

Number of years a person of school entrance age can expect to spend within the specified level of education. For a child of a certain age a, the school life expectancy is calculated as the sum of the age specific enrolment rates for the levels of education specified. The part of the enrolment that is not...

Countries reporting
193
Highest
9.03 years
Malawi
Lowest
0.9975 years
Somalia
Median
6.06 years
Years covered
51
1970–2020
Data points
9,331

What the numbers show

School life expectancy, primary, female (years) is currently reported for 193 countries. The highest value is 9.03 years in Malawi; the lowest is 0.9975 years in Somalia.

The median across all reporting countries is 6.06 years, and the mean is 5.91 years.

The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 9.

Over the past decade 96 countries rose and 96 fell. The largest increase was in Papua New Guinea (up 113.7%), and the largest decrease in Syria (down 32.5%).

School life expectancy, primary, female: full country ranking

#Country LatestYear 10-year changeTrend
1 Malawi 9.03 years 2019 up 9.7% rising
2 Namibia 8.7 years 2018 up 10.4% flat
3 Sierra Leone 8.67 years 2019 up 28.7% volatile
4 Gabon 8.3 years 2011 up 2.2% flat
5 Lesotho 8.21 years 2017 down 4.6% flat
7 Rwanda 8 years 2019 down 13.4% rising
8 Mozambique 7.99 years 2019 up 4.1% rising
9 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 7.9 years 2018 up 6.7% falling
10 Eswatini 7.88 years 2018 down 1.7% rising
11 Zimbabwe 7.76 years 2013 up 7.5% rising
12 Sweden 7.6 years 2018 up 28.3% rising
13 Saint Kitts and Nevis 7.5 years 2016 down 1.8% rising
14 Grenada 7.45 years 2018 up 1.1% falling
15 Bhutan 7.43 years 2020 down 2.0% volatile
16 Togo 7.43 years 2019 up 6.3% rising
17 Burundi 7.32 years 2019 down 6.5% volatile
18 Antigua and Barbuda 7.31 years 2018 down 5.6% rising
19 Uganda 7.31 years 2017 down 16.5% rising
20 Trinidad and Tobago 7.28 years 2010 up 0.3% falling
21 Nauru 7.26 years 2019 up 29.6% flat
22 British Virgin Islands 7.25 years 2018 down 7.4% flat
23 Botswana 7.23 years 2015 down 6.6% rising
24 Nicaragua 7.22 years 2010 up 14.4% rising
25 Saint Lucia 7.22 years 2019 up 4.8% falling
26 Zambia 7.13 years 2017 down 12.1% rising
27 Guinea-Bissau 7.08 years 2010 up 87.9% rising
28 American Samoa 7.05 years 1992 down 9.9% falling
29 Denmark 7.03 years 2018 up 17.4% rising
30 Tanzania 7.03 years 2019 down 6.9% rising
31 Iceland 7.02 years 2018 up 0.6% rising
32 Australia 7.02 years 2018 down 4.7% rising
33 Nepal 7.02 years 2019 down 0.7% rising
34 Norway 7.01 years 2018 up 0.7% rising
35 Samoa 6.98 years 2019 up 10.6% rising
36 Turks and Caicos Islands 6.97 years 2018 up 28.0% falling
37 Tonga 6.96 years 2015 up 5.1% flat
38 Maldives 6.95 years 2019 down 7.5% flat
39 Costa Rica 6.93 years 2019 up 1.4% rising
40 Tunisia 6.92 years 2018 up 11.0% rising
41 Dominica 6.91 years 2019 down 0.4% falling
42 Vanuatu 6.9 years 2015 down 2.4% rising
43 Madagascar 6.88 years 2019 down 9.6% rising
44 Democratic Republic of Congo 6.88 years 2018 up 23.8% rising
45 Aruba 6.88 years 2014 up 7.5% flat
46 Fiji 6.85 years 2019 up 9.8% flat
47 Morocco 6.81 years 2019 up 10.5% rising
48 Congo 6.78 years 2012 up 12.3% falling
49 South Africa 6.77 years 2018 down 8.6% flat
50 Solomon Islands 6.76 years 2018 up 4.4% rising
51 Hong Kong 6.73 years 2019 up 6.3% flat
52 Haiti 6.71 years 1998 up 41.8% rising
53 Benin 6.69 years 2019 up 1.2% volatile
54 Iran 6.69 years 2017 up 35.8% rising
55 Peru 6.69 years 2019 up 1.2% flat
56 East Timor 6.66 years 2019 down 7.1% rising
57 Argentina 6.6 years 2017 down 6.9% falling
58 Gambia 6.57 years 2019 up 33.3% rising
59 Dominican Republic 6.57 years 2019 up 5.6% flat
60 Suriname 6.56 years 2019 down 4.3% falling
61 Gibraltar 6.53 years 2019 down 3.4% flat
62 Belize 6.5 years 2019 down 2.6% flat
63 Ghana 6.48 years 2019 up 5.3% rising
64 Mauritania 6.44 years 2019 up 2.8% rising
65 Egypt 6.43 years 2019 up 7.3% rising
67 Libya 6.4 years 2006 down 0.3% flat
68 Sao Tome and Principe 6.38 years 2017 down 14.1% rising
69 Cambodia 6.38 years 2019 down 10.7% rising
70 Palau 6.37 years 2014 up 17.2% rising
71 Malaysia 6.36 years 2017 up 7.9% rising
72 Angola 6.35 years 2015 up 4.7% rising
73 Papua New Guinea 6.34 years 2016 up 113.7% rising
74 Kiribati 6.34 years 2017 down 1.3% falling
75 Israel 6.33 years 2018 up 1.0% flat
76 Mexico 6.32 years 2018 down 2.7% flat
77 Uruguay 6.32 years 2018 down 6.0% flat
78 Tuvalu 6.31 years 2019 down 3.0% flat
79 Netherlands 6.3 years 2018 down 2.2% rising
80 Switzerland 6.29 years 2018 up 1.8% rising
81 Portugal 6.28 years 2018 down 6.8% falling
82 Indonesia 6.26 years 2018 down 2.3% rising
83 Qatar 6.26 years 2019 down 1.7% falling
84 Ecuador 6.24 years 2018 down 4.7% flat
85 Belgium 6.21 years 2018 up 1.6% flat
86 Kenya 6.2 years 2016 up 3.7% rising
87 Paraguay 6.2 years 2012 down 11.2% rising
88 Seychelles 6.19 years 2019 down 5.7% flat
89 China 6.16 years 2019 up 4.1% rising
90 Slovenia 6.14 years 2018 up 4.0% rising
91 Saudi Arabia 6.14 years 2019 down 0.8% rising
92 Spain 6.14 years 2018 down 1.8% rising
94 Comoros 6.09 years 2018 down 2.6% rising
95 New Zealand 6.08 years 2018 up 0.5% falling
96 Canada 6.08 years 2018 up 3.4% flat
97 Macao 6.07 years 2019 up 10.4% rising
98 United States 6.06 years 2018 down 2.0% flat
99 Cuba 6.06 years 2019 up 1.4% falling
100 United Kingdom 6.06 years 2018 down 3.8% flat
101 Brunei 6.05 years 2019 down 5.1% falling
102 Chile 6.04 years 2018 down 3.6% falling
103 Guatemala 6.04 years 2019 down 12.3% rising
104 Cameroon 6.03 years 2019 up 1.3% rising
105 Thailand 6.03 years 2019 up 2.1% rising
106 Cape Verde 6.03 years 2018 down 8.8% falling
107 Mauritius 6.02 years 2019 down 2.3% flat
108 Iraq 6.02 years 2007 up 27.4% rising
109 Philippines 6.01 years 2018 down 5.6% flat
110 Bermuda 6.01 years 2015 up 0.0% falling
111 Bangladesh 6.01 years 2018 up 17.1% rising
112 Georgia 6.01 years 2019 down 2.9% rising
113 Finland 6 years 2018 up 1.5% rising
114 Latvia 6 years 2018 down 1.1% rising
115 South Korea 5.97 years 2018 down 2.9% falling
116 Greece 5.97 years 2018 up 3.9% flat
117 Cyprus 5.97 years 2018 down 3.1% rising
118 Estonia 5.9 years 2018 down 2.8% flat
119 Barbados 5.89 years 2019 down 2.5% falling
120 Bolivia 5.87 years 2018 down 12.4% rising
121 Bahrain 5.87 years 2019 up 2.2% flat
122 Cote d'Ivoire 5.85 years 2019 up 48.7% rising
123 Vietnam 5.83 years 2019 up 15.3% flat
124 Ethiopia 5.8 years 2015 up 29.9% volatile
125 Guyana 5.78 years 2012 down 4.4% flat
126 Burkina Faso 5.78 years 2019 up 32.8% volatile
127 Venezuela 5.77 years 2017 down 8.1% flat
128 Poland 5.76 years 2018 up 1.8% flat
129 Micronesia (country) 5.69 years 2019 down 16.7% falling
130 French Polynesia 5.62 years 1996 down 12.8% falling
131 Panama 5.62 years 2017 down 12.6% falling
132 Colombia 5.6 years 2018 down 10.0% flat
133 El Salvador 5.58 years 2018 down 18.4% rising
134 San Marino 5.51 years 2019 down 4.1% rising
135 Honduras 5.48 years 2019 down 9.0% rising
136 Myanmar 5.46 years 2018 up 10.5% rising
137 Liberia 5.44 years 2017 down 13.6% volatile
138 Central African Republic 5.36 years 2016 up 66.2% rising
139 United Arab Emirates 5.32 years 2017 up 4.9% rising
140 Albania 5.32 years 2019 up 15.9% rising
142 Senegal 5.28 years 2019 up 0.6% rising
143 Yemen 5.27 years 2016 up 15.4% rising
144 Algeria 5.26 years 2019 down 2.3% rising
145 Cayman Islands 5.17 years 2018 down 6.9% falling
146 Mongolia 5.15 years 2018 down 0.9% rising
147 France 5.13 years 2018 down 0.5% falling
148 Czechia 5.08 years 2018 down 1.8% rising
149 Jamaica 5.05 years 2019 down 12.9% falling
150 Montenegro 5.03 years 2019 up 8.6% rising
151 Brazil 5.03 years 2011 down 12.7% falling
152 Nigeria 5.02 years 2016 down 15.5% rising
153 Afghanistan 4.98 years 2018 up 6.5% volatile
154 Sri Lanka 4.98 years 2018 up 3.0% falling
155 Italy 4.96 years 2018 down 4.2% flat
156 Puerto Rico 4.96 years 2018 down 16.1% falling
157 Guinea 4.94 years 2016 up 12.5% volatile
158 Laos 4.92 years 2019 down 13.8% rising
159 India 4.9 years 2019 down 11.9% rising
160 North Macedonia 4.9 years 2018 up 12.3% rising
161 Jordan 4.87 years 2019 down 9.3% falling
162 Bahamas 4.84 years 2018 down 15.6% falling
163 Chad 4.75 years 2019 up 16.7% volatile
164 Kuwait 4.75 years 2019 down 6.0% rising
165 Marshall Islands 4.68 years 2019 down 20.0% falling
166 Lebanon 4.53 years 1985 down 30.8% falling
167 Sudan 4.52 years 2017 up 22.8% rising
168 Pakistan 4.48 years 2019 up 16.5% rising
169 Romania 4.35 years 2018 up 10.0% flat
170 Mali 4.24 years 2018 down 2.8% volatile
171 Oman 4.24 years 2019 down 30.0% rising
172 Lithuania 4.17 years 2018 up 5.1% rising
173 Russia 4.16 years 2018 up 6.4% rising
174 Germany 4.16 years 2018 up 1.1% flat
175 Kyrgyzstan 4.14 years 2019 up 4.4% rising
176 Kazakhstan 4.13 years 2019 down 4.3% rising
177 Austria 4.12 years 2018 up 4.1% flat
178 Ukraine 4.06 years 2014 up 6.8% rising
179 Uzbekistan 4.06 years 2019 up 9.8% rising
180 Belarus 4.06 years 2018 down 2.7% flat
181 Azerbaijan 4.04 years 2019 up 7.7% rising
182 Slovakia 4.01 years 2018 down 1.2% flat
183 Tajikistan 4 years 2017 up 2.0% rising
184 Serbia 3.98 years 2019 up 2.6% flat
185 Palestine 3.91 years 2019 up 9.3% rising
186 Hungary 3.87 years 2018 down 3.6% flat
187 Equatorial Guinea 3.84 years 2015 down 13.2% falling
188 Croatia 3.79 years 2018 up 0.5% rising
189 Turkey 3.77 years 2018 down 25.4% falling
190 Niger 3.73 years 2019 up 21.4% volatile
191 Armenia 3.7 years 2019 up 9.2% rising
192 Djibouti 3.66 years 2020 up 24.7% rising
193 Moldova 3.53 years 2019 down 4.8% flat
194 Bulgaria 3.49 years 2018 down 19.5% flat
195 Eritrea 3.27 years 2018 down 25.3% rising
196 Syria 3.19 years 2013 down 32.5% rising
197 Somalia 0.9975 years 2007 — volatile

Regions and income groups

Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.

About this data

Indicator
School life expectancy, primary, female (years)
Unit
years
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
242 places, 9,331 data points, 1970–2020
Last refreshed

Number of years a person of school entrance age can expect to spend within the specified level of education. For a child of a certain age a, the school life expectancy is calculated as the sum of the age specific enrolment rates for the levels of education specified. The part of the enrolment that is not distributed by age is divided by the school-age population for the level of education they are enrolled in, and multiplied by the duration of that level of education. The result is then added to the sum of the age-specific enrolment rates. A relatively high SLE indicates greater probability for children to spend more years in education and higher overall retention within the education system. It must be noted that the expected number of years does not necessarily coincide with the expected number of grades of education completed, because of repetition. Since school life expectancy is an average based on participation in different levels of education, the expected number of years of schooling may be pulled down by the magnitude of children who never go to school. Those children who are in school may benefit from many more years of education than the average.