Mauritania: School enrollment, secondary (% net)

Key figures

Over five years it is up 8.92 percentage points from 22.06% in 2013. Since 2001 it is up 17.45 percentage points from 13.53% in 2001. The World Bank has no value for 6 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

What the numbers say

In 2018, Mauritania's school enrollment, secondary (% net) rose 2.79 percentage points on 2017 (from 28.19% to 30.98%).

Across the 8 yearly changes before that (2002 to 2017), the average change was +0.91 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.93 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.0 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 2.79 percentage points in 2018 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.38 percentage points in 2013. 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 2018, Mauritania had the 41st highest value of the 43 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 Mauritania in the 2018 ranking

• Pakistan — 37th of 43: 37.4%
• Malawi — 38th of 43: 34.24%
• Burkina Faso — 39th of 43: 31%
• Mali — 41st of 43: 29.93%
• Madagascar — 42nd of 43: 29.85%
• Burundi — 43rd of 43: 27.52%

What this measures

Net enrollment rate is the ratio of children of official school age who are enrolled in school to the population of the corresponding official school age. Secondary education completes the provision of basic education that began at the primary level, and aims at laying the foundations for lifelong learning and human development, by offering more subject- or skill-oriented instruction using more specialized teachers.

Limitations: Enrollment indicators are based on annual school surveys, but do not necessarily reflect actual attendance or dropout rates during the year. Also, the length of education differs across countries and can influence enrollment rates, although the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED) tries to minimize the difference. For example, a shorter duration for primary education tends to increase the rate; a longer one to decrease it (in part because older children are more at risk of dropping out). Moreover, age at enrollment may be inaccurately estimated or misstated, especially in communities where registration of births is not strictly enforced.

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

All 12 values

School enrollment, secondary (% net) in nearby economies

• Burkina Faso — 31% (2018)
• Burundi — 27.52% (2018)
• Cabo Verde — 70.43% (2018)
• Cameroon — 45.99% (2016)
• Eritrea — 41.58% (2018)
• Eswatini — 41.7% (2015)
• Ghana — 57.24% (2019)
• Lesotho — 41.35% (2016)
• Madagascar — 29.85% (2018)
• Malawi — 34.24% (2018)
• Mali

More education data for Mauritania

• 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) — 7 (2025)
• Primary education, pupils — 891,821 (2024)
• School enrollment, primary (% gross) — 105.44% (2024)
• Primary education, teachers — 24,560 (2024)
• School enrollment, primary, female (% gross) — 106.94% (2024)
• School enrollment, primary, male (% gross) — 103.97% (2024)
• Secondary education, general pupils

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Mauritania's school enrollment, secondary (% net)?

30.98% in 2018, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2001?

It is up 17.45 percentage points from 13.53% in 2001. The highest value was 30.98% in 2018 and the lowest 13.09% in 2004.

How does Mauritania rank?

41st highest of 43 economies with data for 2018.

Is the latest change in school enrollment, secondary (% net) unusual for Mauritania?

In 2018, Mauritania's school enrollment, secondary (% net) rose 2.79 percentage points on 2017 (from 28.19% to 30.98%). Across the 8 yearly changes before that (2002 to 2017), the average change was +0.91 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.93 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.0 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.SEC.NENR, 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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