Compulsory education, duration in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Compulsory education, duration was 11 years in 2025. ▲ Rising
Compulsory education, duration in Sri Lanka, 1998–2025
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for compulsory education, duration in Sri Lanka is 11 years, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 22.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, compulsory education, duration in Sri Lanka peaked at 11 years in 2016 and was at its lowest, 9 years, in 1998.
That places Sri Lanka 62nd out of 197 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 9 years | 9 years | 9 years | 2 |
| 2000s | 9 years | 9 years | 9 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 9.8 years | 9 years | 11 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 11 years | 11 years | 11 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
- 62 Antigua and Barbuda 11 years compare
- 62 Australia 11 years compare
- 62 Barbados 11 years compare
- 62 Belarus 11 years compare
- 62 Ghana 11 years compare
- 62 Latvia 11 years compare
- 62 Lithuania 11 years compare
- 62 Malta 11 years compare
- 62 Monaco 11 years compare
- 62 Panama 11 years compare
- 62 Russia 11 years compare
- 62 Senegal 11 years compare
- 62 Seychelles 11 years compare
- 62 Slovakia 11 years compare
- 62 Switzerland 11 years compare
- 62 Ukraine 11 years compare
- 62 United Kingdom 11 years compare
- 62 Uzbekistan 11 years compare
More education data for Sri Lanka
- Lower secondary school starting age 10 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 5 years (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 21.7% (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 65.8% (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 91.5% (2023)
- Primary education, teachers 73,333 (2023)
- School enrollment, primary, female 92.1% (2023)
- School enrollment, primary, male 90.8% (2023)
- Labor force, total 8.26 million (2025)
- Labor force, female 33.4% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is compulsory education, duration in Sri Lanka?
- Compulsory education, duration in Sri Lanka was 11 years in 2025, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest compulsory education, duration recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 11 years in 2016.
- What is the lowest compulsory education, duration recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 9 years in 1998.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for compulsory education, duration?
- Sri Lanka ranks 62nd out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is compulsory education, duration rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is up 22.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Compulsory education, duration (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Duration of compulsory education is the number of years that children are legally obliged to attend school.