country profile

Tanzania

Sub-Saharan AfricaLower middle income70.55M population

Last updated July 15, 2026

FacebookTwitter/XLinkedInReddit
Critically unprepared

Composite GEFRI Score

Systemwide critical constraints

Tanzania shows critically low readiness to meet the challenges and opportunities of education in a rapidly changing world (21st percentile worldwide). Core capabilities are weak across most dimensions, and essential systems face significant constraints.

29.45Composite score
Global percentile
21st
Global rank
#140
Regional rank
#16
Viewing data for
Severely underprepared
Infrastructure
31.82
14th percentileGlobal avg. 55.13
Critically unprepared
Human Capital
27.24
12th percentileGlobal avg. 47.36
Severely underprepared
Innovation
37.78
34th percentileGlobal avg. 46.19
Severely underprepared
Governance
40.40
39th percentileGlobal avg. 47.46
Critically unprepared
Access & Parity
10.00
33rd percentileGlobal avg. 48.49

Country profile

Tanzania faces substantial readiness constraints across core dimensions. Its weakest results are in Infrastructure (32, 14th percentile), GEFRI Composite (29, 21st percentile) and Human Capital (27, 12th percentile). These gaps continue to weigh on overall readiness.

Uneven scores across dimensions show where readiness conditions are less aligned. Limited electricity or internet coverage still constrains classrooms, preventing large-scale digital instruction. Literacy or tertiary enrollment gaps thin the talent pipeline and limit the country’s capacity to develop future-ready skills.

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. Girls outperform boys in secondary pathways, adding pressure to address male dropout risks.

Governance presents a near-term leapfrog opportunity: performance is just below the global average, backed by enough observed data to support forward planning. Regionally, Tanzania leads most clearly in Governance, 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 21st percentile.

Places 140th worldwide.

Holds a regional position of 16th within Sub-Saharan Africa.

Scores range from Governance (40.4) to Access & Parity (10.0), reflecting variation across dimensions.

Regional peers: Sub-Saharan Africa

Composite GEFRI Score

Global rankRegional rankCountryScore
651South Africa57.44
742Mauritius55.85
SeychellesMicrostate55.06
803Botswana53.75
994Ghana48.08
1085Namibia44.23
1146Cabo Verde39.44
1207Eswatini36.39
1258Equatorial Guinea35.21
1269Senegal34.71
12710Gabon34.67
12811Rwanda34.54
13312Kenya32.83
13513Gambia, The32.46
13614Cote d'Ivoire32.04
13715Lesotho31.46
14016Tanzania29.45
14217Benin29.31
Sao Tome and PrincipeFCSMicrostate29.18
14318Togo28.93
14419Zimbabwe28.61
14520CameroonFCS28.42
14621Mauritania27.91
14822Zambia27.69
15023Angola27.20
15324Guinea25.53
15425MozambiqueFCS25.03
15526Madagascar24.90
15627Uganda24.77
15728Congo, Rep.FCS24.76
15829NigeriaFCS24.43
16030EthiopiaFCS24.27
16131Burkina FasoFCS24.20
16232ComorosFCS24.06
16333Sierra Leone23.91
16434MalawiFCS23.31
16535Liberia22.51
16636Guinea-BissauFCS22.30
16737MaliFCS21.77
16838Burundi20.39
16939SudanFCS19.96
17040NigerFCS19.49
17141EritreaFCS19.24
17242Congo, Dem. Rep.FCS19.13
17343ChadFCS17.06
17544SomaliaFCS16.33
17645South SudanFCS16.19
17746Central African RepublicFCS16.10