Japan: School enrollment, primary (gross), gender parity index (GPI)

Key figures

Over five years it is down 0.1% from 1 in 2014. Since 1971 it is down 0.34% from 1.01 in 1971. The World Bank has no value for 13 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

What the numbers say

In 2019, Japan's school enrollment, primary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) rose 0.00021 on 2018 (from 1 to 1).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1975 to 2018), the average change was −0.0000237 and a typical year strayed about 0.000915 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.00158 in 1996 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.0021 in 1976. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

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

How it compares

In 2019, Japan had the 6th highest value of the 18 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Japan in the 2019 ranking

• Madagascar — 2nd of 18: 1.02
• Nigeria — 3rd of 18: 1.01
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 4th of 18: 1.01
• Bahrain — 6th of 18: 0.99
• Solomon Islands — 7th of 18: 0.99
• Russian Federation — 8th of 18: 0.99

What this measures

Gender parity index for gross enrollment ratio in primary education is the ratio of girls to boys enrolled at primary level in public and private schools.

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

All 36 values

School enrollment, primary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) in nearby economies

• Australia — 1 (2020)
• Brunei Darussalam — 1 (2020)
• Cambodia — 0.98 (2021)
• China — 1.01 (2021)
• Fiji — 0.96 (2021)
• Hong Kong SAR, China — 1.04 (2021)
• Indonesia — 0.97 (2018)
• Kiribati — 1.06 (2020)
• Korea, Rep. — 1 (2020)

More education data for Japan

• Primary school starting age (years) — 6 (2025)
• Primary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• Lower secondary school starting age (years) — 12 (2025)
• Secondary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• Government expenditure on education, total (% of GDP) — 3.34% (2021)
• Primary education, pupils — 6.25 million (2023)
• School enrollment, primary, private (% of total primary) — 1.28% (2023)
• Primary education, teachers — 440,864 (2023)
• Secondary education, pupils — 6.61 million (2023)
• Secondary education, teachers — 627,777 (2023)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
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Questions people ask

What is Japan's school enrollment, primary (gross), gender parity index (GPI)?

1 in 2019, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1971?

It is down 0.34% from 1.01 in 1971. The highest value was 1.01 in 1996 and the lowest 1 in 1979.

How does Japan rank?

6th highest of 18 economies with data for 2019.

Is the latest change in school enrollment, primary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) unusual for Japan?

In 2019, Japan's school enrollment, primary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) rose 0.00021 on 2018 (from 1 to 1). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1975 to 2018), the average change was −0.0000237 and a typical year strayed about 0.000915 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.ENR.PRIM.FM.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://uis.unesco.org/bdds, publisher: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) 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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