The international day is being celebrated for the 25th time in Rwanda under the theme: “Supporting Teachers: 60 Years of Protecting the Teaching Profession, Advancing It and Shaping Our Future.”
In his message to teachers, Rwanda’s Minister of Education, Joseph Nsengimana, said every person has a teacher they remember and appreciate for helping them achieve their dreams, regain confidence, understand something better or realize their potential.
The latest Ministry of Education report on the 2024/2025 school year shows that Rwanda continues to expand its education system. About 34.2% of the country’s population was enrolled in education during that academic year, from pre-primary education to adult literacy programmes.
More teachers in the education system
The number of employees working in education increased by 7.5%, from 142,073 in 2023/2024 to 152,680 in 2024/2025.
Teachers accounted for most of this increase. Their number rose by 9,280, representing an 8.2% increase, bringing the total number of teachers to 122,828.
The increase was recorded across most levels of education, reflecting efforts to strengthen teaching and learning in schools.
Adult literacy programmes were an exception. The number of teachers in this area fell by 3.23%, while the number of adult learners also decreased by 9.1% to 93,548.
Women and men are differently represented
Women make up the majority of teachers in the lower levels of education. They account for 83.0% of teachers in pre-primary education and 55.6% in primary schools.
Men, however, form the larger share of teachers at higher levels. They represent 64.7% of teachers in secondary schools, 69.5% in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), and 78.4% in higher education.
School management staff also increased by 5.5%, reaching 19,225. Men continue to hold most management positions, representing 59.1% in basic education and 62.6% in higher education.
Most teachers meet qualification requirements
The report also shows high levels of teacher qualification in several parts of the education system.
In pre-primary schools, 99.4% of teachers have qualifications required to teach at that level, while the figure reaches 99.8% in primary schools.
In secondary education, 87.1% of teachers have the required qualifications. In TVET, the figure stands at 83.6%.
Student numbers pass 4.8 million
The number of students also increased during the 2024/2025 academic year.
Rwanda had 4,822,507 students, representing a 1.2% increase compared with the previous year. This means that more than one-third of Rwanda’s population was enrolled in education.
However, student numbers did not rise equally across all levels.
The combined number of children in pre-primary schools and nursery centres fell by 2.3%, from 1,297,736 to 1,268,604.
The number of children attending nursery centres dropped by 15.5%, reaching 585,370 from 692,507. At the same time, enrolment in pre-primary schools increased by 12.9%, reaching 683,234 from 605,229.
Primary school enrolment also declined by 1.8%, falling from 3,006,709 students in 2023/2024 to 2,952,236 in 2024/2025.
Growth in TVET and higher education
The report shows stronger growth in some higher levels of education.
Students in general lower secondary education decreased by 4.3%, from 598,860 to 573,321.
Meanwhile, enrolment in secondary schools offering general and professional education increased by 8.6%, reaching 213,294 students.
TVET also recorded significant growth. The number of students from Level 1 to Level 5 increased by 15.6%, reaching 135,025.
Higher education recorded an even stronger increase. The number of students in universities, higher learning institutions and the Rwanda Polytechnic system rose to 153,318 from 130,474, representing a 17.5% increase in one year.
The figures present a mixed picture of Rwanda’s education system: while the country continues to add teachers and expand enrolment in TVET and higher education, some lower levels of education recorded declines in student numbers.