country profile

Botswana

Sub-Saharan AfricaUpper middle income2.56M population

Last updated October 1, 2026

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Progressing readiness

Composite GEFRI Score

Access & Parity is a strength, but Innovation lags

Botswana shows progressing readiness to meet the challenges and opportunities of education in a rapidly changing world (53rd percentile worldwide). Reforms are translating into broader capability, though uneven performance continues to slow system-wide alignment.

63.09Composite score
Global percentile
53rd
Global rank
#85
Regional rank
#3
Viewing data for
Progressing readiness
Infrastructure
70.71
40th percentileGlobal avg. 70.44
Progressing readiness
Human Capital
64.40
40th percentileGlobal avg. 66.18
Severely underprepared
Innovation
41.50
41st percentileGlobal avg. 48.64
Progressing readiness
Governance
60.21
73rd percentileGlobal avg. 47.24
Advanced readiness
Access & Parity
78.62
55th percentileGlobal avg. 60.85

Country profile

Botswana shows progressing readiness, with important strengths but continued gaps across the system. Most dimension scores sit close to global norms, without a single dimension standing far above the rest.

Uneven scores across dimensions show where readiness conditions are less aligned. Low internet adoption slows digital participation and constrains system-wide modernization. Limited tertiary enrollment narrows future talent pipelines and innovation capacity.

Sparse R&D investment and a small research workforce slow experimentation and delay new ideas from reaching learners. Girls outperform boys in secondary pathways, adding pressure to address male dropout risks.

Human Capital presents a near-term leapfrog opportunity: performance is just below the global average, backed by enough observed data to support forward planning. Regionally, Botswana leads most clearly in School Access and Gender Parity, sitting well above the peer average.

Some indicators are imputed, so the profile should be read with moderate caution.

Key insights

Places 85th worldwide.

Holds a regional position of 3rd within Sub-Saharan Africa.

Scores range from Access & Parity (78.6) to Innovation (41.5), reflecting variation across dimensions.

Leads regional peers most clearly in Access & Parity.

Regional peers: Sub-Saharan Africa

Composite GEFRI Score

Global rankRegional rankCountryScore
601Mauritius69.61
632South Africa69.19
——SeychellesMicrostate64.29
853Botswana63.09
974Namibia59.08
1005Ghana58.30
1156Cabo Verde49.23
1167Eswatini49.00
1238Rwanda44.68
1279Kenya43.15
12810Senegal43.13
12911Gabon43.09
13012Gambia, The42.98
13213Cote d'Ivoire41.42
13414Equatorial Guinea41.18
13815Zambia38.41
13916Lesotho38.37
——Sao Tome and PrincipeFCSMicrostate37.61
14117Togo37.45
14418Benin36.70
14519Zimbabwe36.55
14720Tanzania35.50
14821CameroonFCS35.19
14922Mauritania34.31
15023ComorosFCS34.12
15124Sierra Leone33.64
15225Congo, Rep.FCS32.41
15326Angola32.38
15427Burkina FasoFCS32.36
15528Uganda32.33
15729NigeriaFCS31.96
15830MalawiFCS30.65
15931MozambiqueFCS30.61
16032EthiopiaFCS30.53
16133Madagascar29.66
16234MaliFCS29.64
16435Guinea28.53
16636Guinea-BissauFCS27.88
16837Liberia25.30
16938Congo, Dem. Rep.FCS24.51
17039NigerFCS24.18
17140Burundi24.14
17241SudanFCS22.72
17342EritreaFCS20.93
17443ChadFCS20.88
17544SomaliaFCS20.58
17645Central African RepublicFCS20.48
17746South SudanFCS18.93