Global Data on Catholic Schools
Education is one of the leading means for fostering integral human development globally. Approximately 222,000 educational institutions – pre-primary, primary, and secondary schools – are operated under the auspices of the global Catholic Church. This vast network of Catholic schools serves over 60 million children globally, making it the single largest non-governmental provider of education.
The interactive map makes available longitudinal data on Catholic schools and enrollments – disaggregated by country, educational level (pre-primary, primary, secondary), and year – dating back to 1973. Click on a country for a more detailed view.
Data
Catholic Schools and Enrollments
The Vatican Office of Central Church Statistics conducts an annual data collection consisting of self-reported information by dioceses, including on educational institutions. The data collected for Catholic schools includes: the number of Catholic schools by level (pre-primary, primary, secondary, and tertiary) and the number of students enrolled in Catholic schools by level. The data are then aggregated at the country, regional, and global levels. These aggregate numbers are published annually in the Annuarium Statisticum Ecclesiae (Statistical Yearbook of the Church) and are acknowledged to be approximate.
This dashboard allows users to view global, regional, or country-level data for any selected year between 1973 and 2020. Apply the filters to select a particular region or country or to modify the year displayed.
By default, data for all countries and for 2020 are displayed.
Use the map or the list of countries to select a particular country for a more detailed view.
Schools
Enrollments
This database has been developed by digitizing data made public from each annual publication of the Annuarium Statisticum Ecclesiae, published by Libreria Editrice Vaticana. The database includes statistics from as early as 1973, the first year that these statistics were disaggregated by country. Pre-primary schools and enrollments were first recorded for 1979.
The annual Annuarium Statisticum Ecclesiae publishes statistics two years after collection (e.g. the Annuarium Statisticum Ecclesiae with statistics for 2000 had a publication date of 2002).
Data