Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Tonga
Tonga: Government spending on education overall vs. primary education was 5.3% in 2022. ▼ Falling
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Tonga, 1984–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Tonga recorded 5.3% for government spending on education overall vs. primary education in 2022.
That represents a change of up 2.9% on the previous year and up 14.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Tonga peaked at 10.3% in 1984 and was at its lowest, 3.8%, in 2002.
That places Tonga 49th out of 199 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 14 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 10.3% | 10.3% | 10.3% | 1 |
| 1990s | 5.4% | 5.4% | 5.5% | 2 |
| 2000s | 4.2% | 3.8% | 4.9% | 5 |
| 2010s | 4.7% | 4.6% | 4.9% | 3 |
| 2020s | 5.2% | 5.0% | 5.3% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Tonga
More reference data data for Tonga
- Number of child deaths per woman 0.0318 under-five deaths per woman (2024)
- Fertility rate vs. Human Development Index 3.13 live births per woman (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 3.13 live births per woman (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 3.13 live births per woman (2023)
- Human Development Index 0.769 (2023)
- Rule of Law - Governance estimate 0.6943 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
- Rule of Law - Governance score 68.91 0-100 (2024)
- Voice and Accountability - Governance score 71.21 0-100 (2024)
- Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate 0.8207 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
- Political Stability - Governance estimate 1.25 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Tonga?
- Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Tonga was 5.3% in 2022, 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 Tonga?
- The highest recorded value was 10.3% in 1984.
- What is the lowest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in Tonga?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.8% in 2002.
- How does Tonga rank for government spending on education overall vs. primary education?
- Tonga ranks 49th out of 199 countries with data for 2022.
- Is government spending on education overall vs. primary education rising or falling in Tonga?
- Over the last ten years it is up 14.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Tonga 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.