Tonga: Secondary education, teachers (% female)

Key figures

Over five years it is up 5.07 percentage points from 52.67% in 2010. Since 1970 it is up 15.21 percentage points from 42.52% in 1970. The World Bank has no value for 27 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

What the numbers say

In 2015, Tonga's secondary education, teachers (% female) fell 1.94 percentage points on 2014 (from 59.68% to 57.73%).

Across the 12 yearly changes before that (1985 to 2014), the average change was +2.4 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 5.53 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.8 standard deviations below 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 16.78 percentage points in 1999 and the biggest yearly fall was 4.31 percentage points in 1991. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2007 to 2015 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.6 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 60% of the movement over 8 observed years.

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

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

Closest to Tonga in the 2015 ranking

• Solomon Islands — 2nd of 2: 32.61%

What this measures

Female teachers as a percentage of total secondary education teachers includes full-time and part-time teachers.

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 19 values

Secondary education, teachers (% female) in nearby economies

• Brunei Darussalam — 69.68% (2023)
• China — 60.33% (2024)
• Hong Kong SAR, China — 55.16% (2024)
• Indonesia — 62.14% (2025)
• Kiribati — 62.85% (2024)
• Korea, Rep. — 64.99% (2024)
• Lao PDR — 51.8% (2022)
• Macao SAR, China — 57.42% (2024)
• Malaysia — 70.12% (2024)
• Mongolia — 75.85% (2024)

More education data for Tonga

• 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 — 15,644 (2024)
• School enrollment, primary (% gross) — 108.79% (2024)
• Primary education, teachers — 818 (2024)
• School enrollment, primary, female (% gross) — 110.66% (2024)
• School enrollment, primary, male (% gross) — 107.14% (2024)
• School enrollment, primary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) — 0.95 (2020)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Tonga's secondary education, teachers (% female)?

57.73% in 2015, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1970?

It is up 15.21 percentage points from 42.52% in 1970. The highest value was 59.68% in 2014 and the lowest 31.53% in 1998.

Is the latest change in secondary education, teachers (% female) unusual for Tonga?

In 2015, Tonga's secondary education, teachers (% female) fell 1.94 percentage points on 2014 (from 59.68% to 57.73%). Across the 12 yearly changes before that (1985 to 2014), the average change was +2.4 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 5.53 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.8 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, 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..

Source

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