country profile

Saudi Arabia

Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & PakistanHigh income36.97M population

Last updated July 15, 2026

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Progressing readiness

Composite GEFRI Score

Access & Parity is a strength, but Innovation lags

Saudi Arabia shows progressing readiness to meet the challenges and opportunities of education in a rapidly changing world (77th percentile worldwide). Reforms are translating into broader capability, though uneven performance continues to slow system-wide alignment.

63.88Composite score
Global percentile
77th
Global rank
#41
Regional rank
#4
Viewing data for
Progressing readiness
Infrastructure
66.80
67th percentileGlobal avg. 55.13
Progressing readiness
Human Capital
60.75
86th percentileGlobal avg. 47.36
Emerging readiness
Innovation
49.69
67th percentileGlobal avg. 46.19
Emerging readiness
Governance
53.44
66th percentileGlobal avg. 47.46
Advanced readiness
Access & Parity
88.71
85th percentileGlobal avg. 48.49

Country profile

Saudi Arabia 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. High internet adoption enables broad participation in digital learning and innovation. Strong tertiary enrollment expands future talent pipelines and strengthens national innovation potential.

R&D investment remains modest, affecting long-term innovation potential. Gender parity leans toward boys in secondary pathways, signalling persistent barriers for girls.

Regionally, Saudi Arabia leads most clearly in School Access and Gender Parity, sitting well above the peer average.

Key insights

Sits above the global median at the 77th percentile.

Places 41st worldwide.

Holds a regional position of 4th within Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan.

Scores range from Access & Parity (88.7) to Innovation (49.7), reflecting variation across dimensions.

Leads regional peers most clearly in Access & Parity.

Regional peers: Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan

Composite GEFRI Score

Global rankRegional rankCountryScore
171Israel74.74
332United Arab Emirates69.85
393Malta64.27
414Saudi Arabia63.88
535Qatar60.47
576Jordan58.77
627Bahrain58.20
648Oman57.74
799Morocco53.94
8210Kuwait53.39
9411Egypt, Arab Rep.49.54
9612Tunisia49.30
10313West Bank and GazaFCS46.28
10414Iran, Islamic Rep.FCS46.15
11115Algeria40.96
11616Djibouti39.22
12217LebanonFCS36.21
12918IraqFCS34.23
13019LibyaFCS33.89
14920Syrian Arab RepublicFCS27.35
15221Yemen, Rep.FCS25.83