Completion of Upper Secondary Education by Country

What Is Completion of Upper Secondary Education?

Completion of Upper Secondary Education measures the percentage of the population aged 25 and older that has at least finished upper secondary school (equivalent to high school). It indicates how many adults hold a diploma or certificate beyond lower secondary education. This cumulative percentage reflects the share of the adult population with upper secondary credentials.

Why Completion of Upper Secondary Education Matters to a Country’s Progress

  • Signals workforce readiness, since individuals with upper secondary diplomas are more likely to have the basic skills employers need.
  • Correlates with economic growth, as higher educational attainment often boosts productivity and innovation.
  • Reflects social equity, because broader access to upper secondary completion can reduce income disparities and poverty risks.

Implications for Policy & Society

  • Low completion rates often prompt governments to invest in teacher training, school infrastructure, and financial aid to keep students in school.
  • Higher completion rates support a more skilled labor force, reducing unemployment and enabling higher-value job creation.
  • Persistent regional or gender gaps in completion highlight the need for targeted programs to ensure equal educational opportunities.
  • Monitoring annual changes helps evaluate interventions like vocational pathways, curriculum reforms, and retention policies to improve completion.

How to Read the Rankings

  • A higher completion rate indicates a larger share of adults (aged 25+) who have at least completed upper secondary school.
  • “Most Recent Year” shows the latest percentage; “Change” shows the difference from the prior year’s rate.
  • Data gaps or reporting lags may cause apparent fluctuations, so compare multi-year trends for accuracy.

Ranking Highlights

  • Myanmar tops the progress rankings in Educational Attainment (Upper Secondary), recording an increase from 22.76 to 61.79. Nicaragua follows with a gain from 26.75 to 52.35, while Namibia rounds out the top three, rising from 7.76 to 33.03.
  • Across all 164 countries, the average year-over-year change was +0.29 percentage points with a median change of +0.66 percentage points.
  • Overall, 106 countries improved in this area while 58 worsened. Click on a country to open the full country scorecard and see how it performs across a range of key indicators.
Rank Country Most Recent Year Previous Year Change
1Myanmar flag Myanmar61.79% (2020)22.76% (2019)+39.03 pp
2Nicaragua flag Nicaragua52.35% (2021)26.75% (2014)+25.60 pp
3Namibia flag Namibia33.03% (2016)7.76% (2014)+25.26 pp
4Guinea flag Guinea32.50% (2019)7.39% (2018)+25.11 pp
5Uganda flag Uganda38.76% (2021)14.24% (2019)+24.52 pp
6Tunisia flag Tunisia43.94% (2023)19.44% (2022)+24.50 pp
7Nigeria flag Nigeria65.67% (2022)43.93% (2021)+21.74 pp
8Pakistan flag Pakistan26.79% (2021)11.57% (2019)+15.22 pp
9Oman flag Oman63.50% (2022)49.06% (2021)+14.45 pp
10Andorra flag Andorra61.22% (2022)47.35% (2016)+13.87 pp
11Maldives flag Maldives28.75% (2019)16.10% (2017)+12.65 pp
12Papua New Guinea flag Papua New Guinea19.61% (2022)9.05% (2018)+10.55 pp
13Laos flag Laos23.99% (2022)14.64% (2017)+9.35 pp
14Trinidad and Tobago flag Trinidad and Tobago63.40% (2022)54.06% (2021)+9.34 pp
15Gambia flag Gambia29.00% (2023)20.26% (2020)+8.74 pp
16Peru flag Peru64.49% (2023)56.45% (2022)+8.04 pp
17Ghana flag Ghana22.94% (2022)15.60% (2017)+7.34 pp
18Ethiopia flag Ethiopia11.81% (2021)4.53% (2019)+7.29 pp
19Yemen flag Yemen25.61% (2023)18.60% (2014)+7.01 pp
20Brazil flag Brazil60.11% (2023)54.01% (2022)+6.10 pp
21Belize flag Belize43.29% (2020)37.47% (2019)+5.82 pp
22Tuvalu flag Tuvalu38.94% (2022)33.13% (2019)+5.82 pp
23Bahamas flag Bahamas90.90% (2023)85.86% (2019)+5.04 pp
24Tonga flag Tonga68.78% (2021)63.87% (2018)+4.91 pp
25Guyana flag Guyana35.23% (2019)30.83% (2018)+4.40 pp
26Samoa flag Samoa43.90% (2022)39.56% (2019)+4.34 pp
27Mali flag Mali9.66% (2022)5.41% (2020)+4.25 pp
28Togo flag Togo16.11% (2022)11.87% (2019)+4.24 pp
29Benin flag Benin10.69% (2022)6.47% (2021)+4.23 pp
30United States flag United States95.29% (2023)91.19% (2022)+4.10 pp
31Turkmenistan flag Turkmenistan32.99% (2019)29.01% (2015)+3.98 pp
32Comoros flag Comoros22.79% (2022)18.92% (2021)+3.87 pp
33Norway flag Norway79.07% (2022)75.26% (2021)+3.81 pp
34Mongolia flag Mongolia82.91% (2023)79.15% (2022)+3.76 pp
35France flag France78.04% (2023)74.41% (2022)+3.63 pp
36Tanzania flag Tanzania6.54% (2022)3.03% (2020)+3.51 pp
37Honduras flag Honduras19.20% (2023)15.78% (2022)+3.42 pp
38Senegal flag Senegal10.72% (2022)7.41% (2019)+3.31 pp
39Paraguay flag Paraguay45.61% (2022)42.47% (2021)+3.14 pp
40Afghanistan flag Afghanistan12.60% (2022)9.46% (2021)+3.14 pp
41Mexico flag Mexico40.86% (2023)37.90% (2022)+2.96 pp
42Egypt flag Egypt54.31% (2022)51.79% (2021)+2.53 pp
43Qatar flag Qatar51.43% (2022)49.13% (2021)+2.30 pp
44Burundi flag Burundi5.60% (2017)3.33% (2014)+2.27 pp
45Guinea-Bissau flag Guinea-Bissau15.99% (2022)13.80% (2019)+2.19 pp
46Zambia flag Zambia38.45% (2022)36.32% (2021)+2.13 pp
47Grenada flag Grenada49.80% (2020)47.68% (2019)+2.12 pp
48India flag India33.70% (2023)31.61% (2022)+2.09 pp
49Malta flag Malta55.24% (2022)53.19% (2021)+2.05 pp
50Philippines flag Philippines34.46% (2022)32.43% (2021)+2.03 pp
51Cambodia flag Cambodia11.53% (2021)9.61% (2020)+1.92 pp
52Zimbabwe flag Zimbabwe65.94% (2022)64.13% (2021)+1.81 pp
53Türkiye flag Türkiye41.06% (2023)39.26% (2022)+1.80 pp
54Chile flag Chile68.43% (2023)66.63% (2022)+1.80 pp
55Greece flag Greece68.63% (2022)67.12% (2021)+1.52 pp
56South Africa flag South Africa44.17% (2023)42.66% (2022)+1.51 pp
57North Macedonia flag North Macedonia71.95% (2023)70.52% (2022)+1.44 pp
58Albania flag Albania53.27% (2022)51.84% (2021)+1.42 pp
59Bolivia flag Bolivia52.12% (2023)50.71% (2022)+1.42 pp
60Hungary flag Hungary82.64% (2022)81.41% (2021)+1.23 pp
61Cyprus flag Cyprus77.66% (2022)76.44% (2021)+1.21 pp
62Angola flag Angola22.05% (2021)20.84% (2019)+1.21 pp
63Rwanda flag Rwanda14.63% (2023)13.46% (2022)+1.17 pp
64Serbia flag Serbia76.10% (2023)74.94% (2022)+1.16 pp
65San Marino flag San Marino58.59% (2022)57.45% (2020)+1.14 pp
66New Zealand flag New Zealand75.11% (2020)73.99% (2019)+1.12 pp
67South Korea flag South Korea80.86% (2023)79.77% (2022)+1.09 pp
68United Kingdom flag United Kingdom79.41% (2023)78.34% (2022)+1.07 pp
69Botswana flag Botswana45.96% (2023)44.88% (2022)+1.07 pp
70Colombia flag Colombia57.02% (2023)56.08% (2022)+0.94 pp
71Ukraine flag Ukraine72.48% (2021)71.54% (2020)+0.94 pp
72United Arab Emirates flag United Arab Emirates74.39% (2022)73.48% (2021)+0.91 pp
73Bulgaria flag Bulgaria79.32% (2022)78.43% (2021)+0.89 pp
74Lithuania flag Lithuania92.00% (2022)91.11% (2021)+0.88 pp
75Croatia flag Croatia79.99% (2022)79.11% (2021)+0.88 pp
76Belgium flag Belgium75.13% (2022)74.25% (2021)+0.88 pp
77Sweden flag Sweden83.98% (2022)83.11% (2021)+0.87 pp
78Romania flag Romania73.03% (2022)72.17% (2021)+0.86 pp
79Armenia flag Armenia95.57% (2022)94.72% (2021)+0.85 pp
80Uzbekistan flag Uzbekistan96.84% (2022)96.04% (2021)+0.80 pp
81Russia flag Russia92.70% (2023)92.00% (2022)+0.70 pp
82Moldova flag Moldova75.43% (2023)74.75% (2022)+0.67 pp
83Nepal flag Nepal12.85% (2021)12.20% (2019)+0.65 pp
84Saint Lucia flag Saint Lucia20.39% (2022)19.75% (2021)+0.65 pp
85Estonia flag Estonia86.47% (2022)85.84% (2021)+0.63 pp
86Iran flag Iran44.96% (2022)44.34% (2021)+0.62 pp
87Vanuatu flag Vanuatu19.18% (2020)18.56% (2019)+0.61 pp
88Finland flag Finland81.34% (2022)80.74% (2021)+0.61 pp
89Kuwait flag Kuwait31.20% (2018)30.60% (2017)+0.60 pp
90Luxembourg flag Luxembourg77.41% (2022)76.92% (2021)+0.49 pp
91Austria flag Austria82.56% (2023)82.09% (2022)+0.47 pp
92North Korea flag North Korea79.77% (2022)79.34% (2021)+0.43 pp
93Ireland flag Ireland79.52% (2022)79.09% (2021)+0.43 pp
94Canada flag Canada89.57% (2023)89.17% (2022)+0.40 pp
95Sri Lanka flag Sri Lanka64.07% (2022)63.68% (2021)+0.39 pp
96Slovakia flag Slovakia90.18% (2022)89.81% (2021)+0.37 pp
97Liberia flag Liberia26.16% (2019)25.79% (2017)+0.36 pp
98Switzerland flag Switzerland84.28% (2023)83.92% (2022)+0.36 pp
99Italy flag Italy52.80% (2022)52.44% (2021)+0.36 pp
100Mauritius flag Mauritius50.67% (2022)50.31% (2021)+0.35 pp
101Niger flag Niger3.16% (2022)2.81% (2019)+0.35 pp
102Georgia flag Georgia93.20% (2023)92.86% (2022)+0.34 pp
103Netherlands flag Netherlands74.05% (2022)73.85% (2021)+0.20 pp
104Israel flag Israel85.32% (2022)85.19% (2021)+0.13 pp
105Saudi Arabia flag Saudi Arabia64.77% (2023)64.66% (2022)+0.12 pp
106Thailand flag Thailand39.44% (2023)39.33% (2022)+0.11 pp
107Slovenia flag Slovenia86.00% (2022)86.00% (2021)0.00 pp
108Belarus flag Belarus97.89% (2023)97.90% (2022)0.00 pp
109Ecuador flag Ecuador45.38% (2022)45.43% (2021)-0.05 pp
110Burkina Faso flag Burkina Faso5.26% (2023)5.33% (2022)-0.07 pp
111Spain flag Spain55.25% (2023)55.35% (2022)-0.10 pp
112Germany flag Germany80.80% (2022)80.94% (2021)-0.14 pp
113Panama flag Panama51.13% (2023)51.29% (2022)-0.16 pp
114Bahrain flag Bahrain66.73% (2023)66.95% (2022)-0.22 pp
115Czech Republic flag Czech Republic91.17% (2022)91.43% (2021)-0.27 pp
116Bosnia and Herzegovina flag Bosnia and Herzegovina72.05% (2023)72.32% (2022)-0.27 pp
117Denmark flag Denmark76.80% (2022)77.08% (2021)-0.27 pp
118Iraq flag Iraq22.93% (2021)23.38% (2018)-0.45 pp
119Indonesia flag Indonesia39.11% (2023)39.57% (2022)-0.46 pp
120Guatemala flag Guatemala17.56% (2023)18.08% (2022)-0.51 pp
121Iceland flag Iceland79.15% (2022)79.73% (2021)-0.58 pp
122Seychelles flag Seychelles84.31% (2020)84.91% (2019)-0.60 pp
123Portugal flag Portugal47.41% (2023)48.12% (2022)-0.71 pp
124Malawi flag Malawi12.15% (2020)12.97% (2017)-0.82 pp
125Madagascar flag Madagascar8.87% (2021)9.71% (2018)-0.84 pp
126Costa Rica flag Costa Rica39.91% (2023)40.98% (2022)-1.07 pp
127Uruguay flag Uruguay33.72% (2023)34.79% (2022)-1.07 pp
128Azerbaijan flag Azerbaijan91.81% (2023)92.90% (2022)-1.09 pp
129Barbados flag Barbados32.02% (2019)33.29% (2018)-1.27 pp
130Tajikistan flag Tajikistan80.67% (2017)82.34% (2016)-1.67 pp
131Brunei flag Brunei68.77% (2022)70.84% (2021)-2.07 pp
132El Salvador flag El Salvador33.81% (2023)35.95% (2022)-2.14 pp
133Mozambique flag Mozambique11.64% (2022)14.04% (2020)-2.40 pp
134Australia flag Australia78.96% (2023)81.67% (2022)-2.71 pp
135Côte d'Ivoire flag Côte d'Ivoire14.08% (2022)16.81% (2021)-2.73 pp
136Sierra Leone flag Sierra Leone12.09% (2019)14.83% (2018)-2.73 pp
137Vietnam flag Vietnam39.10% (2023)41.92% (2022)-2.83 pp
138Chad flag Chad4.56% (2019)7.48% (2018)-2.93 pp
139Kazakhstan flag Kazakhstan94.32% (2019)97.40% (2018)-3.09 pp
140Palau flag Palau87.56% (2020)90.79% (2014)-3.23 pp
141Venezuela flag Venezuela58.07% (2017)61.92% (2016)-3.85 pp
142Bangladesh flag Bangladesh29.31% (2022)33.66% (2021)-4.35 pp
143Mauritania flag Mauritania5.57% (2019)10.14% (2017)-4.57 pp
144Kenya flag Kenya37.58% (2022)43.91% (2021)-6.33 pp
145Malaysia flag Malaysia69.80% (2022)76.29% (2021)-6.49 pp
146Cameroon flag Cameroon14.26% (2018)21.17% (2014)-6.91 pp
147Suriname flag Suriname20.24% (2018)27.62% (2016)-7.38 pp
148Jamaica flag Jamaica56.37% (2022)63.89% (2021)-7.53 pp
149Jordan flag Jordan42.56% (2023)50.24% (2020)-7.68 pp
150Dominican Republic flag Dominican Republic36.03% (2023)43.78% (2022)-7.75 pp
151Lebanon flag Lebanon42.44% (2019)52.70% (2018)-10.26 pp
152Lesotho flag Lesotho6.47% (2019)20.47% (2018)-13.99 pp
153Singapore flag Singapore63.37% (2023)79.04% (2022)-15.67 pp
154Marshall Islands flag Marshall Islands48.39% (2021)64.56% (2019)-16.16 pp
155Eswatini flag Eswatini19.38% (2023)35.81% (2022)-16.43 pp
156Democratic Republic of the Congo flag Democratic Republic of the Congo7.74% (2020)25.22% (2018)-17.48 pp
157Fiji flag Fiji25.93% (2021)44.56% (2017)-18.63 pp
158Latvia flag Latvia69.23% (2023)88.77% (2022)-19.54 pp
159Poland flag Poland67.00% (2023)88.20% (2022)-21.20 pp
160Montenegro flag Montenegro59.26% (2021)81.92% (2020)-22.66 pp
161Kyrgyzstan flag Kyrgyzstan65.32% (2018)91.52% (2017)-26.20 pp
162Timor-Leste flag Timor-Leste14.93% (2022)41.45% (2021)-26.52 pp
163Kiribati flag Kiribati45.88% (2020)74.02% (2019)-28.14 pp
164Nauru flag Nauru31.47% (2021)97.11% (2013)-65.64 pp

Source: World Bank. Only countries with complete data (both points within the past 10 years) are shown.