Brazil
The figures from Brazil highlight both progress and remaining gaps in public investment in education. Brazil’s education financing landscape reflects both significant civil society victories and persistent systemic constraints. While landmark legislative achievements—including the permanent constitutionalization of Fundeb, improvements to equity-focused funding mechanisms, and the approval of the National Education System—demonstrate progress toward equitable access, chronic underfunding continues to undermine these gains.
Despite an advanced legal framework, public investment remains stagnant at approximately 5.1% of GDP, far below the National Education Plan’s 10% target, as austerity policies and debt servicing continue to dominate fiscal priorities over educational development. Public spending per school-age person was USD 2,205.87 (2021), remaining below the regional average.
Civil society in Brazil, particularly our member the Brazilian Campaign for the Right to Education (BCRE), has long advocated for increased public investment in education, demanding that at least 10% of the national GDP be allocated to public education. This target, enshrined in the National Education Plan (PNE 2014–2024) as a result of sustained mobilization by education movements, reflects the recognition that adequate and equitable financing is essential to guarantee the right to education. The demand is based on the Cost of Quality Education per Student (CAQ) methodology, developed by the BCRE. Learn more about our member’s recommendations in BCRE’s policy brief, as well as in the resources available on their webpage.
Read our members’ education financing brief
The first dimension we examine is public financial effort, referring to the share of national resources allocated to public education, measured as a percentage of the total government budget and of national wealth (GDP). In Brazil, the latest available data (2021) shows that 5.5% of GDP was spent on education, almost meeting the 6% benchmark and performing above the regional average. However, public education expenditure accounted for only 12.8% of the government budget, far below the 20% benchmark and below the regional average.
Public expenditure on education as a % of GDP
Public expenditure on education as a % of total public expenditure
Per-student spending was USD 2,205.87, which remains modest in regional comparison.
Public spending per school-age person
- The gender ratio in Brazil was 0.95 (2022), indicating near parity between boys and girls, though slightly below the regional average.
- The wealth parity index was 1.06, showing that children from the wealthiest households remain somewhat more likely to attend school than those from the poorest.
Gender ratio on school attendance
Ratio between the poorest and richest quintiles on school attendance
COST OF QUALITY EDUCATION IN BRAZIL
Learn more about the CAQi–CAQ system, developed by our member the Brazilian Campaign for the Right to Education, which shifts the focus from a “logic of available resources” to a “logic of necessary resources.” The system estimates the financial, material, and human conditions required to ensure that teachers can teach and students can learn with quality.
