Education · Latin America & Caribbean · Lower-middle income
Nicaragua: education in numbers
Pre-primary enrolment is 69.0% (2020), 97th of 176 in the world and 23rd of 33 in Latin America & Caribbean. Primary enrolment is 109.5% (2023), 34th of 191 in the world and 9th of 39 in Latin America & Caribbean. Primary completion is 81.7% (2022), 132nd of 168 in the world and 30th of 33 in Latin America & Caribbean.
Pre-primary enrolment
NicaraguaLatin America & CaribbeanLower-middle incomeWorld
Primary enrolment
NicaraguaLatin America & CaribbeanLower-middle incomeWorld
12 indicators
Education: Nicaragua in detail
Latest reported value, world rank and rank within Latin America & Caribbean; 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 | 69.0%2020 | 97/176 | 23/33 | 30.5% | 55.6% | 69.0% | +13.4 ppsince 2010 | 75.6% | 58.5% | 60.9% | |
| Primary enrolmentPrimary school enrolment, % gross | 109.5%2023 | 34/191 | 9/39 | 103.3% | 119.7% | · | −10.1 ppsince 2010 | 104.6% | 105.4% | 102.2% | |
| Primary completionPrimary completion rate, % of age group | 81.7%2022 | 132/168 | 30/33 | 65.5% | 82.8% | 81.7%2022 | −1.1 ppsince 2010 | 96.5% | 88.0% | 88.0% | |
| Secondary enrolmentSecondary school enrolment, % gross | 70.2%2023 | 141/176 | 34/37 | 53.4% | 71.4% | · | −1.2 ppsince 2010 | 98.0% | 68.0% | 77.3% | |
| Lower secondary completionLower secondary completion rate, % of age group | 64.7%2010 | — | — | 45.2% | 64.7% | · | +19.5 ppsince 2000 | 81.5% | 73.7% | 77.9% | |
| Tertiary enrolmentTertiary enrolment, % gross | 30.4%2023 | 111/172 | 19/31 | 18.0%2002 | · | · | +12.4 ppsince 2002 | 58.9% | 27.4% | 43.6% | |
| Out-of-school childrenChildren out of school, % of primary school age | 6.7%2023 | 62/178 | 19/35 | 15.3% | 4.5% | · | +2.2 ppsince 2010 | — | 8.3% | — | |
| Adult literacyAdult literacy rate, % of people 15+ | 87.3%2014 | 93/141 | 23/26 | 76.7%2001 | 85.6%2012 | · | +10.6 ppsince 2001 | 94.9% | 78.3% | 87.7% | |
| Youth literacyYouth literacy rate, % of people 15–24 | 95.3%2014 | 92/148 | 26/31 | 86.2%2001 | 93.7%2009 | · | +9.1 ppsince 2001 | 98.7% | 91.9% | 93.1% | |
| Pupils per teacherPupils per teacher, primary | 30.22010 | — | — | 35.7 | 30.2 | · | −15%since 2000 | 21.3 | 28.9 | 23.4 | |
| Education spendingPublic spending on education, % of GDP | 2.9%2023 | 147/184 | 33/38 | 3.0% | 4.5% | 4.6% | −1.6 ppsince 2010 | 3.8% | 3.4% | 3.6% | |
| Education, % of budgetEducation spending, % of government expenditure | 11.0%2024 | 122/179 | 28/37 | 14.6% | 26.4% | 22.7% | −12.0 ppsince 2014 | 16.6% | 13.6% | 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+13.4 pp69.0% in 2020
- Lower secondary completion+19.5 pp64.7% in 2010
- Tertiary enrolment+12.4 pp30.4% in 2023
- Adult literacy+10.6 pp87.3% in 2014
Worse than ten years ago
- Primary completion−1.1 pp81.7% in 2022
- Secondary enrolment−1.2 pp70.2% in 2023
- Out-of-school children+2.2 pp6.7% in 2023
Only indicators where higher or lower is clearly better are rated (for example, unemployment down is better, life expectancy up is better).
neighbours
Nicaragua and its neighbours
Countries sharing a land border with Nicaragua. Latest values since 2005; the highest in each row is marked.
| Indicator | Nicaragua | Colombia | Honduras | Costa Rica |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-primary enrolment | 69.0%2020 | 85.9%2020 | 33.8%2021 | 95.2%2021 |
| Primary enrolment | 109.5%2023 | 104.8%2022 | 79.0%2024 | 104.8%2024 |
| Primary completion | 81.7%2022 | 97.1%2022 | 72.0%2024 | 106.4%2024 |
| Secondary enrolment | 70.2%2023 | 101.6%2022 | 51.8%2024 | 121.8%2024 |
| Lower secondary completion | 64.7%2010 | 83.0%2022 | 36.6%2024 | 61.4%2024 |
| Tertiary enrolment | 30.4%2023 | 59.3%2022 | 23.3%2024 | 55.0%2019 |
| Out-of-school children | 6.7%2023 | 7.3%2022 | 26.6%2024 | 4.5%2024 |
| Adult literacy | 87.3%2014 | 95.3%2024 | 88.2%2024 | 97.4%2011 |
| Youth literacy | 95.3%2014 | 99.0%2024 | 95.8%2024 | 80.5%2018 |