The United Kingdom (UK) is a major contributor to COL’s budget and an important source of leadership and expertise. As a major donor, the UK has a seat on COL’s Board of Governors. 

School-age Population by Education Level1

5,170,203

 

4,053,443

Secondary

 

Tertiary

 

 

Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in Secondary Education
for the school year ending 20181

122%

 

119%

Female

 

Male

 

 

Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in Tertiary Education
for the school year ending 20181

71%

 

52%

Female

 

Male

 

 

Percentage of female teachers in 1

60.6%

 

45.2%

Secondary (2017)

 

Tertiary (2017)

 

 

1. UNESCO Institute for Statistics Data Centre, retrieved in June 2021

 

Literacy rate (2010)1

99%

 

99%

Adult (15+) literacy rate
Female

 

Adult (15+) literacy rate
Male

 

 

Economic Activity (2010)1

56%

 

69%

Adult (15+) economic activity
Female

 

Adult (15+) economic activity
Male

 

 

Political Decision Making (2014)1

23%

Proportion of seats held by women in national parliament

 

 

Life expectancy (2012)1

83

 

79

Female

 

Male

 

 

1. COL gender country profile June 2017 

 

47.6 117.5
Fixed-telephone subscriptions per 100 inhabitants1 Mobile-cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants1

 

 

  
39.6 96.9
Fixed-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants1 Mobile-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants1

 

 

  
91.7 94.9
Households with a computer (%)1 Individuals using the internet (%)1

 

 

1. International Telecommunication Union (ITU) ICT Eye Country profile, retrieved in March 2020

 

Partners

Partnerships are fundamental to COL’s work. Strategic partnerships allow COL to broaden its reach and engage at global, regional and national levels, while implementation partners support COL’s work in communities and institutions across Commonwealth Member States. Partners include multilateral organisations, regional bodies, national governments, government agencies, foundations, civil society organisations, public and private (not-for-profit) institutions and the private sector. COL partnerships assist in improving and extending teaching and learning services to people in the developing Commonwealth.

In the UK, COL’s partners include:

  • Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
  • Association of Commonwealth Universities
  • The Open University
  • University of London

COL is also working with two London-based IGOs: the Commonwealth Foundation and the Commonwealth Secretariat.