Namibia: Pupil-teacher ratio, primary

Key figures

Since 1992 it is down 21.58% from 32 in 1992 (0.93% a year on average, compounded). The World Bank has no value for 9 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

What the numbers say

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 2.33 in 1999 and the biggest yearly fall was 2.27 in 2005. 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, Namibia had the 29th highest value of the 83 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 Namibia in the 2018 ranking

• El Salvador — 26th of 83: 26.89
• Morocco — 27th of 83: 26.8
• Solomon Islands — 28th of 83: 25.41
• Kyrgyz Republic — 30th of 83: 24.99
• Jamaica — 31st of 83: 24.79
• West Bank and Gaza — 32nd of 83: 24.45

What this measures

Primary school pupil-teacher ratio is the average number of pupils per teacher in primary school.

Limitations: The comparability of pupil-teacher ratios across countries is affected by the definition of teachers and by differences in class size by grade and in the number of hours taught, as well as the different practices countries employ such as part-time teachers, school shifts, and multi-grade classes. Moreover, the underlying enrollment levels are subject to a variety of reporting errors.

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

All 18 values

Pupil-teacher ratio, primary in nearby economies

• Angola — 50.03 (2015)
• Benin — 39.2 (2018)
• Botswana — 23.71 (2015)
• Burkina Faso — 39.72 (2018)
• Burundi — 42.52 (2018)
• Cabo Verde — 21.07 (2018)
• Cameroon — 44.83 (2018)
• Central African Republic — 83.41 (2016)
• Chad — 56.89 (2016)
• Comoros — 28.06 (2018)
• Congo, Dem. Rep. — 33.2 (2015)

More education data for Namibia

• Primary school starting age (years) — 7 (2025)
• Primary education, duration (years) — 7 (2025)
• Lower secondary school starting age (years) — 14 (2025)
• Secondary education, duration (years) — 5 (2025)
• Over-age students, primary, female (% of female enrollment) — 13% (2018)
• Over-age students, primary, male (% of male enrollment) — 18.31% (2018)
• Over-age students, primary (% of enrollment) — 15.7% (2018)
• Primary education, pupils — 590,029 (2024)
• School enrollment, primary (% gross) — 120.72% (2024)
• Secondary education, pupils

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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• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Namibia's pupil-teacher ratio, primary?

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

How has it changed since 1992?

It is down 21.58% from 32 in 1992 (0.93% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 33.09 in 2004 and the lowest 25.09 in 2018.

How does Namibia rank?

29th highest of 83 economies with data for 2018.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, 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).

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.PRM.ENRL.TC.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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