Maldives
Last updated August 26, 2026
Fragile/Conflict-Affected Country: This country is classified as experiencing institutional and social fragility.
In fragile and conflict-affected settings, severe data gaps, rapid disruption, and uneven reporting can distort index values. These scores should be read as a limited signal, not a complete picture of conditions in the country.
Composite GEFRI Score
Infrastructure is a strength, but Innovation lags
Maldives demonstrates early-stage readiness to meet the challenges and opportunities of education in a rapidly changing world (37th percentile worldwide). Investments are generating initial gains, yet substantial gaps persist in several dimensions.
- Global percentile
- 37th
- Global rank
- #112
- Regional rank
- #4
- Viewing data for
Country profile
Maldives remains in the emerging-readiness range, with progress visible but major gaps still limiting future readiness. Its weakest results are in Innovation (21, 2nd percentile). These gaps continue to weigh on overall readiness.
Wide gaps between dimensions reveal structural weaknesses that slow coordinated progress. High internet adoption enables broad participation in digital learning and innovation.
Sparse R&D investment and a small research workforce slow experimentation and delay new ideas from reaching learners. Policy execution and regulatory capacity remain weak, leaving reforms fragmented and hard to sustain. Gender parity leans toward boys in secondary pathways, signalling persistent barriers for girls.
GEFRI Composite and Governance present a near-term leapfrog opportunity: performance is just below the global average, backed by enough observed data to support forward planning. Regionally, Maldives leads most clearly in Human Capital, sitting well above the peer average.
Most indicators are observed rather than imputed, so estimation uncertainty is limited.
Key insights
Falls below many peers at the 37th percentile.
Places 112th worldwide.
Holds a regional position of 4th within South Asia.
Scores range from Infrastructure (84.5) to Innovation (20.6), reflecting variation across dimensions.
Leads regional peers most clearly in Human Capital.
Regional peers: South Asia
Composite GEFRI Score
| Global rank | Regional rank | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 85 | 1 | India | 63.15 |
| 94 | 2 | Sri Lanka | 59.83 |
| 98 | 3 | Nepal | 58.95 |
| 112 | 4 | MaldivesFCS | 52.48 |
| 113 | 5 | Bhutan | 51.50 |
| 120 | 6 | Bangladesh | 45.70 |
| 138 | 7 | Pakistan | 38.32 |
| 167 | 8 | AfghanistanFCS | 26.36 |