Primary school completion rates, adjusted gender parity index in Lesotho
Lesotho: Primary school completion rates, adjusted gender parity index was 1.24 index in 2025. ▼ Falling
Primary school completion rates, adjusted gender parity index in Lesotho, 1981–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in index.
Analysis
Lesotho recorded 1.24 index for primary school completion rates, adjusted gender parity index in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.5% on the previous year and down 5.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, primary school completion rates, adjusted gender parity index in Lesotho peaked at 1.45 index in 1981 and was at its lowest, 1.24 index, in 2025.
Lesotho ranks 7th of 165 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 45 years of available data.
Primary school completion rates, adjusted gender parity index in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | index | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 1.45 index | — |
| 1982 | 1.44 index | -0.4% |
| 1983 | 1.44 index | -0.4% |
| 1984 | 1.43 index | -0.3% |
| 1985 | 1.43 index | -0.3% |
| 1986 | 1.43 index | -0.3% |
| 1987 | 1.42 index | -0.4% |
| 1988 | 1.42 index | -0.2% |
| 1989 | 1.41 index | -0.5% |
| 1990 | 1.4 index | -0.5% |
| 1991 | 1.39 index | -0.7% |
| 1992 | 1.38 index | -1.0% |
| 1993 | 1.37 index | -0.9% |
| 1994 | 1.36 index | -0.8% |
| 1995 | 1.35 index | -0.8% |
| 1996 | 1.34 index | -0.6% |
| 1997 | 1.33 index | -0.4% |
| 1998 | 1.33 index | -0.2% |
| 1999 | 1.33 index | -0.0% |
| 2000 | 1.33 index | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 1.33 index | -0.2% |
| 2002 | 1.33 index | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 1.33 index | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 1.33 index | +0.3% |
| 2005 | 1.34 index | +0.4% |
| 2006 | 1.34 index | +0.2% |
| 2007 | 1.34 index | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 1.35 index | +0.2% |
| 2009 | 1.35 index | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 1.34 index | -0.2% |
| 2011 | 1.34 index | -0.3% |
| 2012 | 1.33 index | -0.5% |
| 2013 | 1.33 index | -0.4% |
| 2014 | 1.32 index | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 1.32 index | -0.6% |
| 2016 | 1.31 index | -0.6% |
| 2017 | 1.3 index | -0.6% |
| 2018 | 1.29 index | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 1.28 index | -0.6% |
| 2020 | 1.28 index | -0.6% |
| 2021 | 1.27 index | -0.6% |
| 2022 | 1.26 index | -0.6% |
| 2023 | 1.25 index | -0.7% |
| 2024 | 1.24 index | -0.6% |
| 2025 | 1.24 index | -0.5% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 1.24 index is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 1.06 index, 1.2× the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 1.24 index is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1.09 index, 1.1× the median. (45 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 1.43 index | 1.41 index | 1.45 index | 9 |
| 1990s | 1.36 index | 1.33 index | 1.4 index | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.34 index | 1.33 index | 1.35 index | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.32 index | 1.28 index | 1.34 index | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.26 index | 1.24 index | 1.28 index | 6 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
- 4 Malawi 1.29 index compare
- 5 Equatorial Guinea 1.28 index compare
- 6 Ethiopia 1.27 index compare
- 8 Senegal 1.19 index compare
- 9 Madagascar 1.19 index compare
- 10 Guinea-Bissau 1.18 index compare
More gender data for Lesotho
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) 786.22 (2030)
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) (0-14), annual growth -0.5717 % change on previous year (2030)
- Population 1,708 (2030)
- Working-age population (UN estimates and projections) 1,708 (2030)
- Population (UN estimates and projections), annual growth rate 1.83 % change on previous year (2030)
- Age population, age 00, female, interpolated 26,291 (2025)
- Age population, age 00, male, interpolated 26,787 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, female, interpolated 25,880 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, male, interpolated 26,319 (2025)
- Age population, age 02, female, interpolated 25,717 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is primary school completion rates, adjusted gender parity index in Lesotho?
- Primary school completion rates, adjusted gender parity index in Lesotho was 1.24 index in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest primary school completion rates, adjusted gender parity index recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 1.45 index in 1981.
- What is the lowest primary school completion rates, adjusted gender parity index recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.24 index in 2025.
- How does Lesotho rank for primary school completion rates, adjusted gender parity index?
- Lesotho ranks 7th out of 165 countries with data for 2025.
- Is primary school completion rates, adjusted gender parity index rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Lesotho data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Primary school completion rates, adjusted gender parity index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
An adjusted gender parity index of 1 indicates equal primary school completion rates between boys and girls. Values below 1 favor boys, and values above 1 favor girls.