WORLD Policy Analysis Center

Is beginning secondary education compulsory?

This map tells us whether countries make entering secondary education accessible to citizens by making education compulsory in the first year of secondary education.

Guarantees to compulsory education can make clear that government has an obligation to provide education, and support families in prioritizing education for all of their children

Compulsory education can be specified by an age range, a number of years, or a level of education during which children are required to go to school. We have looked at each of these factors, as well as national information on the length of primary education and the standard age of beginning school, in order to create comparable information on the age until which education is compulsory. Note that in some cases, source text uses authoritative language to assert the parents’/guardians/ responsibility to ensure children of a certain age are enrolled or attending school; these cases were categorized as a guarantee to compulsory education.

No compulsory guarantee means that there is no explicit guarantee to compulsory education at the beginning of secondary school in the country’s constitution, legislation, or non-legislative policy commitments.

Subject to progressive realization means that the country does not guarantee compulsory education at the beginning of secondary school, but has committed to take steps to gradually realize compulsory secondary education over time

Policy guarantee to compulsory refers to guarantees to compulsory education at the beginning of secondary school included in policy documents or non-legislative government commitments. While this can be a valuable policy-making approach, non-legislative guarantees to compulsory can be more impermanent and reversable than those enshrined in legislation or constitutions.

Legislative or constitutional guarantee to compulsory means that a guarantee to compulsory education at the beginning of secondary school is enshrined in the country’s legislation or constitution.

Countries

Bangladesh - Not compulsory guarantee

Benin - Not compulsory guarantee

Bhutan - Not compulsory guarantee

Botswana - Not compulsory guarantee

Burundi - Not compulsory guarantee

Cameroon - Not compulsory guarantee

Democratic Republic of the Congo - Not compulsory guarantee

Equatorial Guinea - Not compulsory guarantee

Ethiopia - Not compulsory guarantee

Iraq - Not compulsory guarantee

Lesotho - Not compulsory guarantee

Malaysia - Not compulsory guarantee

Micronesia, Federated States of - Not compulsory guarantee

Papua New Guinea - Not compulsory guarantee

Singapore - Not compulsory guarantee

Solomon Islands - Not compulsory guarantee

Eswatini - Not compulsory guarantee

Tuvalu - Not compulsory guarantee

Uganda - Not compulsory guarantee

Zambia - Not compulsory guarantee

Madagascar - Subject to progressive realization

Myanmar - Subject to progressive realization

Nicaragua - Subject to progressive realization

Vietnam - Subject to progressive realization

Cuba - Policy guarantee

Eritrea - Policy guarantee

Rwanda - Policy guarantee

Tanzania - Policy guarantee

Afghanistan - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Albania - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Algeria - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Andorra - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Angola - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Antigua and Barbuda - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Argentina - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Armenia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Australia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Austria - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Azerbaijan - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Bahamas - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Bahrain - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Barbados - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Belarus - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Belgium - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Belize - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Bolivia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Bosnia and Herzegovina - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Brazil - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Brunei - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Bulgaria - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Burkina Faso - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Cambodia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Canada - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Cabo Verde - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Central African Republic - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Chad - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Chile - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

China - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Colombia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Comoros - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Republic of the Congo - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Costa Rica - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Cote d'Ivoire - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Croatia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Cyprus - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Czech Republic - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Denmark - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Djibouti - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Dominica - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Dominican Republic - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Ecuador - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Egypt - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

El Salvador - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Estonia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Fiji - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Finland - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

France - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Gabon - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

The Gambia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Georgia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Germany - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Ghana - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Greece - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Greenland - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Grenada - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Guatemala - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Guinea-Bissau - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Guyana - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Haiti - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Honduras - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Hungary - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Iceland - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

India - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Indonesia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Ireland - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Israel - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Italy - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Jamaica - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Japan - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Jordan - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Kazakhstan - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Kenya - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Kiribati - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Democratic People's Republic of Korea - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Republic of Korea - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Kuwait - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Kyrgyzstan - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Laos - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Latvia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Lebanon - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Liberia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Libya - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Liechtenstein - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Lithuania - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Luxembourg - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

North Macedonia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Malawi - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Maldives - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Mali - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Malta - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Marshall Islands - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Mauritania - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Mauritius - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Mexico - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Moldova - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Monaco - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Mongolia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Montenegro - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Morocco - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Mozambique - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Namibia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Nauru - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Nepal - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

The Netherlands - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

New Zealand - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Nigeria - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Norway - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Oman - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Pakistan - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Palau - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Panama - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Paraguay - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Peru - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

The Philippines - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Poland - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Portugal - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Qatar - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Romania - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Russian Federation - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Samoa - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

San Marino - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Sao Tome and Principe - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Saudi Arabia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Senegal - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Serbia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Seychelles - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Sierra Leone - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Slovakia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Slovenia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Somalia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

South Africa - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

South Sudan - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Spain - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Sri Lanka - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

St. Kitts and Nevis - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

St. Lucia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

St. Vincent and the Grenadines - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Sudan - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Suriname - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Sweden - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Syria - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Tajikistan - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Thailand - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Timor-Leste - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Togo - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Tonga - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Trinidad and Tobago - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Tunisia - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Türkiye - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Turkmenistan - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Ukraine - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

United Arab Emirates - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

United Kingdom - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

United States of America - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Uruguay - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Uzbekistan - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Vanuatu - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Venezuela - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Yemen - Legislative or constitutional guarantee

Zimbabwe - Legislative or constitutional guarantee