The UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) is pleased to announce the latest updates to its global database of education indicators with the February 2025 Data Refresh. This update incorporates updated newly available country-level data and for Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 indicators and a selection of Other Policy Relevant Indicators (OPRI). This refresh completes the UIS publication of education data for survey year 2024, which reflects data from reference year 2023 and preceding years.
Key Highlights of the February 2025 Data Refresh
- Expanded Global Education Database: The UIS has added 808,330 national data points to its database, representing a 19% increase. Of these, 21% are for SDG indicators, while 79% are OPRI indicators. A major driver of the expansion of SDG indicator data was the increase of reported data of indicator 4.4.1 (ICT skills) across countries, which extended the number of skills to 23.
- Updates for Indicator Reporting: The Data Refresh introduces Indicator 4.7.3, "Extent to which greening policy intensions are mainstreamed in curriculum documents," marking its inaugural reporting, thanks to the work led by the Monitoring and Evaluating Climate Communication and Education (MECCE) and the Global Education Monitoring Report (GEMR). Following the Transforming Education Summit in 2022, this indicator was adopted for national benchmarking, now totaling 10 indicators. Data for this new indicator has been provided by 110 countries. This addition provides crucial insights into countries' efforts to integrate these critical themes into their education systems. New data have also been added to OPRI indicators measuring enrollment in private institutions, inbound internationally mobile students, and enrolment in general/vocational programmes.
- Focus on SDG 4 Indicators: This Data Refresh includes updated country-level data for key SDG 4 indicators with high coverage, such as:
- SDG 4.1.6: Administration of a nationally representative learning assessment, reported for 236 countries and territories, covering data from 2014 to 2024.
- SDG 4.1.4: Measuring out-of-school children, reported for 219 countries and territories, with data available from 1970 to 2024.
- SDG 4.7.3: Measuring the mainstreaming of green policy intentions in national curriculum documents, reported for the first time (see above), including data for 110 countries and territories.
- SDG 4.1.1: Measuring learning outcomes of children and young people, reported for 148 countries and territories, with data available from 1995 to 2023.
- SDG 4.1.3: Measuring the gross intake ratio to the last grade of primary and secondary education for girls and boys, reported for 214 countries and territories, with data available from 1970 to 2024.
- Integration of the national population data: The UIS has made significant progress in integrating national population data through its Hybrid Population Data Policy, which enhances country ownership of population-based education indicators. In this Data Refresh, national population data from 76 countries were used to calculate these indicators, marking an increase of 15 countries compared to 2023. To further improve data quality, the UIS is working on refinements to the national population data, a more standardized data submission protocol, and a streamlined workflow for data reporting.
- External Data Integration and Partner Contributions: The UIS continues to prioritize external data integration and partner contributions. By collaborating with a broad range of partners including ECLAC, GEMR, ILO, IMF, ITU, and OECD and UNPD, we have expanded our data resources. This includes the UIS, OECD, and Eurostat (UOE) survey through which data from 19 countries through the. Additionally, population estimates for 133 countries were updated using the United Nations Population Division's (UNPD) World Population Prospects 2024, released in July 2024.
How to Access the Data
The February 2025 UIS Data Refresh is accessible through multiple platforms, including the UIS Data Browser (databrowser.uis.unesco.org), the SDG 4 Scorecard Dashboard, and the UIS Data API & Bulk Data Download Service
About the UIS: The UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) is the official source of internationally comparable data on education, science, culture, and communication. The UIS serves Member States and the international community by providing high-quality data and analysis to inform policy decisions and monitor progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals.
Contact: UNESCO Institute for Statistics Email: uis@unesco.org Phone: +1 514-343-6880
