Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in Lesotho
Lesotho: Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education was 10.4% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in Lesotho, 1983–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in Lesotho is 10.4%, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 24 years on record.
That represents a change of down 5.7% on the previous year and down 25.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in Lesotho peaked at 32.5% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 10.4%, in 2024.
That places Lesotho 144th out of 194 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | 29.4% | — |
| 1984 | 20.8% | -29.2% |
| 1985 | 22.9% | +10.1% |
| 1988 | 15.2% | -33.6% |
| 1989 | 15.4% | +0.9% |
| 1993 | 22.7% | +48.1% |
| 1994 | 18.4% | -19.1% |
| 1995 | 20.2% | +9.8% |
| 1997 | 26.1% | +29.0% |
| 1999 | 23.4% | -10.3% |
| 2000 | 19.1% | -18.1% |
| 2001 | 23.0% | +20.0% |
| 2002 | 23.5% | +2.3% |
| 2003 | 31.5% | +34.1% |
| 2004 | 27.2% | -13.8% |
| 2005 | 32.5% | +19.8% |
| 2006 | 29.0% | -11.0% |
| 2008 | 24.2% | -16.4% |
| 2015 | 13.9% | -42.5% |
| 2016 | 14.0% | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 15.1% | +8.0% |
| 2018 | 14.1% | -6.8% |
| 2023 | 11.0% | -21.9% |
| 2024 | 10.4% | -5.7% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 10.4% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 14.5%, 72% of the median. (44 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 10.4% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 14.2%, 73% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 20.7% | 15.2% | 29.4% | 5 |
| 1990s | 22.2% | 18.4% | 26.1% | 5 |
| 2000s | 26.2% | 19.1% | 32.5% | 8 |
| 2010s | 14.3% | 13.9% | 15.1% | 4 |
| 2020s | 10.7% | 10.4% | 11.0% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More economy & growth data for Lesotho
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), gaps 0 BoP, current US$ (1989)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (1989)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 0 BoP, current US$ per person (1989)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), gaps filled -5.77 million BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), annual 54.09 % change on previous year (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per unit -0.0022 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per capita -2.44 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), annual growth rate 18 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), per unit of GDP 0.4215 includes gold, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), per capita 431.19 includes gold, current US$ per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in Lesotho?
- Share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in Lesotho was 10.4% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 32.5% in 2005.
- What is the lowest share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.4% in 2024.
- How does Lesotho rank for share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education?
- Lesotho ranks 144th out of 194 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 25.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- 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 Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Percentage of total general government spending (across all sectors) that is allocated to education.