SY
Education · Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan · Low income
Syria: education in numbers
Pre-primary enrolment is 5.5% (2013). Primary enrolment is 81.4% (2024), 182nd of 191 in the world and 19th of 19 in the Middle East & North Africa. Primary completion is 60.1% (2024), 158th of 168 in the world and 19th of 19 in the Middle East & North Africa.
Pre-primary enrolment
SyriaMiddle East, North Africa, A…Low incomeWorld
Primary enrolment
SyriaMiddle East, North Africa, A…Low incomeWorld
11 indicators
Education: Syria in detail
Latest reported value, world rank and rank within Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan; 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 | 5.5%2013 | — | — | 8.6% | 9.0% | · | −4.0 ppsince 2003 | 33.8% | 20.1% | 60.9% | |
| Primary enrolmentPrimary school enrolment, % gross | 81.4%2024 | 182/191 | 19/19 | 102.3% | 116.7% | 70.4% | +9.1 ppsince 2013 | 94.6% | 97.6% | 102.2% | |
| Primary completionPrimary completion rate, % of age group | 60.1%2024 | 158/168 | 19/19 | 88.3% | 103.4% | 56.8% | −3.3 ppsince 2013 | 83.7% | 62.9% | 88.0% | |
| Secondary enrolmentSecondary school enrolment, % gross | 38.7%2024 | 166/176 | 17/17 | 43.7% | 70.8% | 39.1% | −8.8 ppsince 2013 | 65.8% | 41.5% | 77.3% | |
| Lower secondary completionLower secondary completion rate, % of age group | 42.7%2024 | 151/168 | 19/19 | 46.7% | 64.8% | 42.5% | −7.1 ppsince 2013 | 66.7% | 38.6% | 77.9% | |
| Tertiary enrolmentTertiary enrolment, % gross | 43.8%2016 | 93/172 | 12/19 | 12.6%2002 | 24.7% | · | +22.9 ppsince 2006 | 29.7% | 9.3% | 43.6% | |
| Out-of-school childrenChildren out of school, % of primary school age | 21.8%2024 | 22/178 | 2/17 | 6.2% | 1.2% | 33.4% | −14.1 ppsince 2013 | — | 24.1% | — | |
| Adult literacyAdult literacy rate, % of people 15+ | 94.4%2021 | 66/141 | 9/18 | 82.9%2002 | · | 94.4%2021 | +13.6 ppsince 2004 | 75.6% | 63.6% | 87.7% | |
| Youth literacyYouth literacy rate, % of people 15–24 | 98.4%2021 | 71/148 | 11/19 | 95.2%2002 | · | 98.4%2021 | +5.9 ppsince 2004 | 86.9% | 75.4% | 93.1% | |
| Education spendingPublic spending on education, % of GDP | 5.1%2009 | — | — | 4.5%2001 | 5.1%2009 | · | +1.4 ppsince 1996 | 4.4% | 3.0% | 3.6% | |
| Education, % of budgetEducation spending, % of government expenditure | 19.2%2009 | — | — | 15.7%2001 | 19.2%2009 | · | +4.1 ppsince 1996 | 13.1% | 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
- Tertiary enrolment+22.9 pp43.8% in 2016
- Out-of-school children−14.1 pp21.8% in 2024
- Adult literacy+13.6 pp94.4% in 2021
- Youth literacy+5.9 pp98.4% in 2021
Worse than ten years ago
- Pre-primary enrolment−4.0 pp5.5% in 2013
- Primary completion−3.3 pp60.1% in 2024
- Secondary enrolment−8.8 pp38.7% in 2024
- Lower secondary completion−7.1 pp42.7% in 2024
Only indicators where higher or lower is clearly better are rated (for example, unemployment down is better, life expectancy up is better).
neighbours
Syria and its neighbours
Countries sharing a land border with Syria. Latest values since 2005; the highest in each row is marked.
| Indicator | Syria | Türkiye | Iraq | Jordan | Israel | Lebanon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-primary enrolment | 5.5%2013 | 39.7%2020 | 3.8%2011 | 26.6%2021 | 111.2%2020 | — |
| Primary enrolment | 81.4%2024 | 102.4%2023 | 104.6%2007 | 98.6%2024 | 97.4%2024 | 81.8%2024 |
| Primary completion | 60.1%2024 | 90.6%2023 | 63.6%2007 | 97.0%2024 | 97.0%2024 | 67.3%2023 |
| Secondary enrolment | 38.7%2024 | 118.4%2023 | 50.6%2007 | 91.8%2024 | 98.5%2024 | 63.8%2024 |
| Lower secondary completion | 42.7%2024 | 91.8%2023 | 44.9%2007 | 91.3%2024 | 97.8%2024 | 52.9%2023 |
| Tertiary enrolment | 43.8%2016 | 105.9%2023 | 15.6%2005 | 35.9%2024 | 56.3%2024 | 54.4%2023 |
| Out-of-school children | 21.8%2024 | 0.6%2023 | 10.7%2007 | 1.9%2024 | 2.7%2024 | 22.5%2024 |
| Adult literacy | 94.4%2021 | 97.3%2021 | 84.1%2021 | 94.4%2024 | — | 92.0%2019 |
| Youth literacy | 98.4%2021 | 92.2%2022 | 92.4%2021 | 98.7%2024 | — | 96.7%2019 |