Nicaragua
Latin America & Caribbean · Lower middle income· 6.92M inhabitants
Last updated: November 11, 2025
Futures readiness profile
Key insights: Nicaragua
Nicaragua is significantly behind global peers in every GEFRI dimension: Infrastructure (50, 29th percentile), Human Capital (41, 31st percentile), Innovation (31, 27th percentile), Governance (22, 14th percentile), and School Access and Gender Parity (10, 29th percentile). This profile signals deep-rooted structural challenges. Urgent and comprehensive reforms, investments, and capacity building are required to leapfrog beyond its present situation and avoid falling further behind. The country’s potential for future generations has yet to be unlocked.
Composite GEFRI Score
30.92
23rd percentile
Higher scores indicate greater education futures readiness
Component scores
School Access and Gender Parity10.10
Below global avg. · 29th %-tile
Governance22.00
Below global avg. · 14th %-tile
Captures the effectiveness and quality of policies, regulations, and governance that shape the educational environment.
Innovation31.23
Below global avg. · 27th %-tile
Reflects a country’s capacity to foster, produce, and apply new knowledge and technology in society and education.
Human Capital41.47
Below global avg. · 31st %-tile
Assesses the educational attainment and capacity of a country’s population, focusing on access and completion at secondary and tertiary levels as well as literacy.
Infrastructure49.79
Below global avg. · 29th %-tile
Measures the availability and quality of basic digital and electrical infrastructure that supports education.
Regional peers: Latin America & Caribbean
| Global rank | Regional rank | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 34 | 1 | Chile | 70.30 |
| 41 | 2 | Argentina | 64.11 |
| 47 | 3 | Uruguay | 62.66 |
| — | — | Cayman Islands(microstate) | 61.05 |
| — | — | Antigua and Barbuda(microstate) | 58.25 |
| — | — | St. Kitts and Nevis(microstate) | 57.01 |
| 71 | 4 | Peru | 56.70 |
| — | — | Grenada(microstate) | 56.11 |
| — | — | Curacao(microstate) | 55.76 |
| 76 | 5 | Colombia | 55.16 |
| — | — | Turks and Caicos Islands(microstate) | 55.04 |
| 78 | 6 | Mexico | 54.55 |
| — | — | Virgin Islands (U.S.)(microstate) | 54.14 |
| 80 | 7 | Brazil | 53.97 |
| — | — | Aruba(microstate) | 53.59 |
| 83 | 8 | Puerto Rico (US) | 53.48 |
| — | — | St. Vincent and the Grenadines(microstate) | 53.30 |
| — | — | St. Martin (French part)(microstate) | 53.13 |
| — | — | Barbados(microstate) | 52.65 |
| 87 | 9 | Cuba | 52.63 |
| — | — | Dominica(microstate) | 52.41 |
| — | — | Sint Maarten (Dutch part)(microstate) | 52.30 |
| 90 | 10 | Bahamas, The | 51.83 |
| 92 | 11 | Ecuador | 50.69 |
| — | — | St. Lucia(microstate) | 50.48 |
| 94 | 12 | Dominican Republic | 50.29 |
| 97 | 13 | Costa Rica | 49.74 |
| 99 | 14 | Bolivia | 49.60 |
| 102 | 15 | Jamaica | 48.63 |
| 107 | 16 | Panama | 46.94 |
| — | — | British Virgin Islands(microstate) | 46.10 |
| 109 | 17 | Belize | 46.00 |
| 110 | 18 | Paraguay | 45.50 |
| 113 | 19 | Trinidad and Tobago | 44.26 |
| 114 | 20 | Venezuela, RB | 44.03 |
| 121 | 21 | Guyana | 39.19 |
| 123 | 22 | El Salvador | 37.15 |
| 125 | 23 | Suriname | 36.81 |
| 131 | 24 | Honduras | 33.35 |
| 136 | 25 | Guatemala | 31.21 |
| 137 | 26 | Nicaragua | 30.92 |
| 157 | 27 | Haiti | 24.35 |