Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Lesotho
Lesotho: Government spending on education overall vs. primary education was 6.6% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Lesotho, 1971–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2024, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Lesotho stood at 6.6%.
That represents a change of down 9.2% on the previous year and down 13.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Lesotho peaked at 13.2% in 2003 and was at its lowest, 4.2%, in 1974.
That places Lesotho 19th out of 199 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 4.6% | 4.2% | 4.9% | 4 |
| 1980s | 7.4% | 6.2% | 10.1% | 5 |
| 1990s | 9.6% | 7.0% | 12.5% | 5 |
| 2000s | 11.2% | 9.4% | 13.2% | 8 |
| 2010s | 7.7% | 7.3% | 8.2% | 4 |
| 2020s | 7.0% | 6.6% | 7.3% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More reference data data for Lesotho
- Number of child deaths per woman 0.1655 under-five deaths per woman (2024)
- Fertility rate vs. Human Development Index 2.69 live births per woman (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 2.69 live births per woman (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 2.69 live births per woman (2023)
- Human Development Index 0.55 (2023)
- Rule of Law - Governance estimate -0.4066 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
- Rule of Law - Governance score 49.97 0-100 (2024)
- Voice and Accountability - Governance score 54.13 0-100 (2024)
- Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate -0.1551 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
- Political Stability - Governance estimate -0.2589 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Lesotho?
- Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Lesotho was 6.6% 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 Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 13.2% in 2003.
- What is the lowest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.2% in 1974.
- How does Lesotho rank for government spending on education overall vs. primary education?
- Lesotho ranks 19th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is government spending on education overall vs. primary education rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Lesotho 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.