Maldives
Last updated July 15, 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
Limited relative strength in Infrastructure, with deep gaps in Innovation
Maldives shows severely limited readiness to meet the challenges and opportunities of education in a rapidly changing world (38th percentile worldwide). Key structural conditions limit capacity to plan, implement, and sustain forward-looking reforms.
- Global percentile
- 38th
- Global rank
- #110
- Regional rank
- #4
- Viewing data for
Country profile
Maldives faces substantial readiness constraints across core dimensions. Its weakest results are in Innovation (16, 1st percentile). These gaps continue to weigh on overall readiness.
Uneven scores across dimensions show where readiness conditions are less aligned. 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.
Governance and GEFRI Composite present a near-term leapfrog opportunity: performance is just below the global average, backed by enough observed data to support forward planning. Regionally, Innovation lags peers the most, signalling where investment could have the highest impact.
Most indicators are observed rather than imputed, so estimation uncertainty is limited.
Key insights
Falls below many peers at the 38th percentile.
Places 110th worldwide.
Holds a regional position of 4th within South Asia.
Scores range from Infrastructure (64.2) to Innovation (15.8), reflecting variation across dimensions.
Trails regional peers most clearly in Innovation.
Regional peers: South Asia
Composite GEFRI Score
| Global rank | Regional rank | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 85 | 1 | Nepal | 51.91 |
| 88 | 2 | India | 51.37 |
| 98 | 3 | Sri Lanka | 48.87 |
| 110 | 4 | MaldivesFCS | 43.04 |
| 117 | 5 | Bangladesh | 38.17 |
| 118 | 6 | Bhutan | 38.12 |
| 138 | 7 | Pakistan | 31.34 |
| 174 | 8 | AfghanistanFCS | 16.98 |