Arab World: Tertiary education, academic staff (% female)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Arab World's tertiary education, academic staff (% female) rose 1.52 percentage points on 2023 (from 42.69% to 44.21%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +0.43 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.37 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 3.0 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 1.52 percentage points in 2024 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.76 percentage points in 1989. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.57 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 94% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 44.88% for 2027. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2022 to 2024 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 0.54%, against 1.64% for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

What this measures

Tertiary education, academic staff (% female) is the share of female academic staff in tertiary education.

Limitations: The indicator measures the level of gender representation in the teaching profession, rather than the effectiveness and quality of teaching.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 43 values

Tertiary education, academic staff (% female) in nearby economies

• Afghanistan — 13.68% (2020)
• Algeria — 47.31% (2024)
• Bahrain — 46.89% (2024)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 50.84% (2025)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 34% (2020)
• Jordan — 33.44% (2024)
• Malta — 39.03% (2024)
• Morocco — 36.36% (2024)
• Oman — 38.92% (2024)
• Pakistan — 36.47% (2024)

More education data for Arab World

• Primary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• Secondary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• School enrollment, tertiary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) — 1.08 (2024)
• Primary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group) — 83.15% (2024)
• Primary education, pupils — 55.62 million (2024)
• School enrollment, primary (% gross) — 91.56% (2024)
• School enrollment, primary, female (% gross) — 89.65% (2024)
• School enrollment, primary, male (% gross) — 93.4% (2024)
• Primary education, teachers — 2.58 million (2024)
• Primary education, teachers (% female)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Arab World's tertiary education, academic staff (% female)?

44.21% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1970?

It is up 29.7 percentage points from 14.51% in 1970. The highest value was 44.21% in 2024 and the lowest 14.51% in 1970.

Is the latest change in tertiary education, academic staff (% female) unusual for Arab World?

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.TER.TCHR.FE.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://databrowser.uis.unesco.org/resources, note: The data are obtained through the UIS API. Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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