The UNESCO has revealed that women now outnumber men in higher education globally, although disparities in access and graduation rates remain across several regions of the world.
This was disclosed in the organisation’s first report on global trends in higher education, released on Tuesday.
According to the report, there were 114 women enrolled in higher education for every 100 men worldwide in 2024. UNESCO noted that gender parity has now been achieved in all regions except sub-Saharan Africa.
The report highlighted major progress in Central and South Asia, where female enrollment rose from 68 women per 100 men in 2000 to full gender parity by 2023.
Despite these gains, UNESCO said women are still underrepresented at the doctoral level and occupy only about one-quarter of leadership positions in academic institutions globally.
The report further revealed that global higher education enrollment has more than doubled over the past two decades, increasing from approximately 100 million students in 2000 to 269 million in 2024.
Data gathered from 146 countries showed significant inequalities in access to tertiary education across regions. While nearly 80 per cent of young people in Western Europe and North America are enrolled in higher education, enrollment rates are considerably lower elsewhere — 59 per cent in Latin America and the Caribbean, 37 per cent in the Arab States, 30 per cent in South and West Asia, and just nine per cent in sub-Saharan Africa.
UNESCO Director-General, Khaled El-Enany, said the increasing demand for higher education reflects its critical role in building sustainable societies.
He stated that although the sector continues to expand globally, equal access to quality education remains a challenge, stressing the need for innovative funding models that support inclusive higher education systems.
The report also noted that international student mobility has more than tripled over the past 20 years, rising from 2.1 million students in 2000 to nearly 7.3 million in 2023. However, UNESCO said only three per cent of students worldwide currently benefit from studying abroad opportunities.
According to the findings, seven countries, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, Canada, Russia, and France host half of the world’s international students. Meanwhile, countries such as Turkey and the United Arab Emirates are emerging as increasingly attractive destinations for foreign students.
UNESCO also disclosed that private institutions now account for roughly one-third of the global student population, with Latin America and the Caribbean recording the highest proportion at 49 per cent in 2023.
The organisation added that only one-third of countries worldwide legally guarantee free public higher education.
Although enrollment numbers continue to rise, graduation rates have not grown at the same pace. The global gross graduation rate increased modestly from 22 per cent in 2013 to 27 per cent in 2024.
On refugee education, UNESCO said access to higher education remains difficult despite improvements in enrollment rates among refugees, which rose from one per cent in 2019 to nine per cent in 2025.
The organisation identified challenges in recognising academic qualifications, particularly where documentation is missing or incomplete, as a major obstacle for refugees and forcibly displaced persons.
To address this issue, UNESCO said its Qualifications Passport initiative is currently being implemented in Iraq, Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
The report also warned that rapid expansion in higher education systems and mounting funding pressures are affecting quality standards globally.
According to UNESCO, government spending on higher education currently averages just 0.8 per cent of global GDP.
The organisation further noted that digital technologies and artificial intelligence are increasingly reshaping teaching and learning worldwide, but only one in five universities had adopted a formal AI policy as of 2025.
Elijah Adeyemi
No comments:
Post a Comment