10 answers, 3 from Benin's own official bodies, with a link to each figure.
51.4% of adults in Benin aged 15 and over could read and write in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics data published by the World Bank. The previous figure, for 2021, was 43.8%.
Literacy rates are usually based on household surveys or censuses, where people report whether they can read and write a short sentence in any language, so changes between years partly reflect different sources. Literacy is higher among younger people, who have had more schooling, than among older adults.
Benin's gross enrolment ratio in secondary school was 43.6% in 2022, according to UNESCO data published by the World Bank. In tertiary education it was 10.2%, according to the same source.
The gross enrolment ratio divides all pupils enrolled at a level by the population of the official age for that level, so it can include over-age pupils. Secondary education in Benin is run by the Ministry of Secondary, Technical and Vocational Education, which also runs the BEPC and, with the Office of the Baccalaureate, the baccalaureate exams.
Government spending on education in Benin was 3.2% of GDP in 2023, up from 3.1% in 2022, according to UNESCO data published by the World Bank.
The figure covers spending by central and local government on all levels of education, including salaries, running costs and investment, and transfers to private schools. It does not include fees paid by families. Education budgets are set in the annual finance law.
The figures below use one definition for every country, so they can differ from national figures.
The latest figure from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, for 2018, is 97.2%. It is the top of the series, which starts in 2005. It is 2nd highest of 19 in Sub-Saharan Africa, where the median is 90.7%. World rank, highest first: 9th of 69.
The UNESCO Institute for Statistics puts gross secondary school enrolment in Benin at 43.6% in 2022. That is the lowest since at least 2011. Sub-Saharan Africa median: 54.1%; Benin is 13th highest of 15. Of 132 countries with 2022 data, 128th highest.
The UNESCO Institute for Statistics puts gross tertiary enrolment in Benin at 10.2% in 2022. Its high point since 2005 was 2013, at 14.8%; its low point was 2005, at 5.4%. Across Sub-Saharan Africa the middle value was 13.9%, and Benin placed 10th highest of 15. World rank, highest first: 113th of 119.
In 2022, the adult literacy rate in Benin was 51.4%, according to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. It is the top of the series, which starts in 2011. Across Sub-Saharan Africa the middle value was 62.8%, and Benin placed 10th highest of 12. Worldwide: 42nd of 44.
The UNESCO Institute for Statistics puts government spending on education in Benin at 3.2% of GDP in 2023. Since 2005 it has ranged from 2.4% of GDP (2007) to 3.7% of GDP (2010). Sub-Saharan Africa median: 3.3% of GDP; Benin is 20th highest of 35. Of 112 countries with 2023 data, 71st highest.
In 2018, the number of primary pupils per teacher in Benin was 39, according to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. It is the bottom of the series, which starts in 2005. Sub-Saharan Africa median: 39; Benin is 11th highest of 23. World rank, highest first: 14th of 85.
In 2022, the primary completion rate in Benin was 61.6%, according to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Since 2008 it has ranged from 57.5% (2020) to 75.4% (2015). Across Sub-Saharan Africa the middle value was 70.6%, and Benin placed 16th highest of 23. Worldwide: 119th of 127.
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