Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Barbados
Barbados: Government spending on education overall vs. primary education was 3.6% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Barbados, 1971–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Barbados recorded 3.6% for government spending on education overall vs. primary education in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 31 years on record.
The figure is down 5.8% on the previous year and down 33.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Barbados peaked at 7.5% in 1974 and was at its lowest, 3.6%, in 2024.
Barbados ranks 124th of 199 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 31 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 6.6% | 5.9% | 7.5% | 6 |
| 1990s | 5.5% | 4.3% | 6.6% | 2 |
| 2000s | 5.5% | 4.7% | 6.2% | 9 |
| 2010s | 4.8% | 3.7% | 6.1% | 9 |
| 2020s | 4.0% | 3.6% | 4.5% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Barbados
More reference data data for Barbados
- Number of child deaths per woman 0.0177 under-five deaths per woman (2024)
- Fertility rate vs. Human Development Index 1.71 live births per woman (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 1.71 live births per woman (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 1.71 live births per woman (2023)
- Human Development Index 0.811 (2023)
- Rule of Law - Governance estimate 0.7278 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
- Rule of Law - Governance score 69.49 0-100 (2024)
- Voice and Accountability - Governance score 74.25 0-100 (2024)
- Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate 0.994 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
- Political Stability - Governance estimate 1.27 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Barbados?
- Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Barbados was 3.6% 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 Barbados?
- The highest recorded value was 7.5% in 1974.
- What is the lowest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in Barbados?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.6% in 2024.
- How does Barbados rank for government spending on education overall vs. primary education?
- Barbados ranks 124th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is government spending on education overall vs. primary education rising or falling in Barbados?
- Over the last ten years it is down 33.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Barbados 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.