Education · Sub-Saharan Africa · Low income
Burundi: education in numbers
Pre-primary enrolment is 16.5% (2021), 160th of 176 in the world and 27th of 39 in Sub-Saharan Africa. Primary enrolment is 100.6% (2025), 92nd of 191 in the world and 19th of 41 in Sub-Saharan Africa. Primary completion is 47.6% (2020), 165th of 168 in the world and 34th of 36 in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Pre-primary enrolment
BurundiSub-Saharan AfricaLow incomeWorld
Primary enrolment
BurundiSub-Saharan AfricaLow incomeWorld
12 indicators
Education: Burundi in detail
Latest reported value, world rank and rank within Sub-Saharan Africa; values around 2000, 2010, 2020; group and world columns are World Bank aggregates.
| Indicator | Latest | World rank | In region | ~2000 | ~2010 | ~2020 | 10-year change | Region | Income group | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-primary enrolmentPre-primary enrolment, % gross | 16.5%2021 | 160/176 | 27/39 | 0.8% | 10.7% | 16.5% | +8.4 ppsince 2011 | 28.1% | 20.1% | 60.9% | |
| Primary enrolmentPrimary school enrolment, % gross | 100.6%2025 | 92/191 | 19/41 | 59.2% | 135.2% | 101.7% | −15.6 ppsince 2015 | 97.1% | 97.6% | 102.2% | |
| Primary completionPrimary completion rate, % of age group | 47.6%2020 | 165/168 | 34/36 | 24.6% | 52.5% | 47.6% | −4.9 ppsince 2010 | 68.9% | 62.9% | 88.0% | |
| Secondary enrolmentSecondary school enrolment, % gross | 23.1%2025 | 174/176 | 32/34 | 9.4%2001 | 23.8% | 44.9% | −20.8 ppsince 2015 | 45.9% | 41.5% | 77.3% | |
| Lower secondary completionLower secondary completion rate, % of age group | 28.0%2020 | 162/168 | 28/34 | · | 16.4% | 28.0% | +11.6 ppsince 2010 | 44.4% | 38.6% | 77.9% | |
| Tertiary enrolmentTertiary enrolment, % gross | 6.4%2025 | 161/172 | 25/34 | 1.1% | 3.1% | 4.6%2018 | +1.1 ppsince 2015 | 9.3% | 9.3% | 43.6% | |
| Out-of-school childrenChildren out of school, % of primary school age | 26.5%2025 | 15/178 | 11/38 | 57.7% | 5.8% | 20.6% | +15.4 ppsince 2015 | — | 24.1% | — | |
| Adult literacyAdult literacy rate, % of people 15+ | 71.3%2020 | 113/141 | 20/41 | 59.3% | 48.1%2008 | 71.3% | +23.3 ppsince 2008 | 68.7% | 63.6% | 87.7% | |
| Youth literacyYouth literacy rate, % of people 15–24 | 88.4%2020 | 117/148 | 16/42 | 73.3% | 74.5% | 88.4% | +13.9 ppsince 2010 | 79.0% | 75.4% | 93.1% | |
| Pupils per teacherPupils per teacher, primary | 42.52018 | 14/173 | 12/40 | 55.4 | 50.6 | 42.52018 | −18%since 2007 | 37.4 | 39.8 | 23.4 | |
| Education spendingPublic spending on education, % of GDP | 4.5%2025 | 77/184 | 12/43 | 2.6% | 6.8% | 5.3% | −1.9 ppsince 2015 | 3.3% | 3.0% | 3.6% | |
| Education, % of budgetEducation spending, % of government expenditure | 10.3%2025 | 135/179 | 34/42 | 10.7% | 16.6% | 20.7% | −17.2 ppsince 2015 | 15.4% | 16.7% | 14.0% |
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0)“·” — no value reported within two years of that date. World rank counts countries with a recent value.
Better than ten years ago
- Pre-primary enrolment+8.4 pp16.5% in 2021
- Lower secondary completion+11.6 pp28.0% in 2020
- Tertiary enrolment+1.1 pp6.4% in 2025
- Adult literacy+23.3 pp71.3% in 2020
Worse than ten years ago
- Primary completion−4.9 pp47.6% in 2020
- Secondary enrolment−20.8 pp23.1% in 2025
- Out-of-school children+15.4 pp26.5% in 2025
Only indicators where higher or lower is clearly better are rated (for example, unemployment down is better, life expectancy up is better).
neighbours
Burundi and its neighbours
Countries sharing a land border with Burundi. Latest values since 2005; the highest in each row is marked.
| Indicator | Burundi | Democratic Republic of the Congo | Tanzania | Rwanda |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-primary enrolment | 16.5%2021 | 6.9%2020 | 77.3%2021 | 28.2%2021 |
| Primary enrolment | 100.6%2025 | 117.6%2023 | 92.7%2024 | 149.6%2024 |
| Primary completion | 47.6%2020 | 75.7%2023 | 77.3%2024 | 66.8%2024 |
| Secondary enrolment | 23.1%2025 | 55.5%2023 | 28.2%2021 | 48.8%2024 |
| Lower secondary completion | 28.0%2020 | 55.9%2020 | 34.2%2024 | 47.6%2024 |
| Tertiary enrolment | 6.4%2025 | 6.4%2020 | 4.0%2024 | 9.4%2024 |
| Out-of-school children | 26.5%2025 | — | 16.4%2024 | 1.0%2024 |
| Adult literacy | 71.3%2020 | 68.5%2023 | 78.2%2022 | 78.8%2022 |
| Youth literacy | 88.4%2020 | 77.9%2023 | 87.1%2022 | 90.0%2022 |