Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Lesotho

Lesotho: Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and was 28,565 number in 2016. ▼ Falling

Latest (2016)
28,565 number
Change on year
down 3.7%
World rank
71st
of 137 countries
All-time high
113,213 number
in 1999
All-time low
27,533 number
in 2013
Years of data
36
1972–2016

Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Lesotho, 1972–2016

20.0k40.0k60.0k80.0k100.0k120.0k1972199420161972: 62.2k number1973: 59.3k number1977: 59.3k number1978: 57.5k number1979: 57.9k number1980: 59.4k number1981: 60.2k number1982: 56.9k number1983: 59.7k number1984: 64.0k number1985: 61.1k number1986: 65.8k number1991: 76.1k number1992: 80.4k number1993: 90.5k number1994: 89.3k number1996: 93.4k number1998: 111.0k number1999: 113.2k number2000: 86.9k number2001: 79.5k number2002: 71.1k number2003: 58.4k number2004: 52.5k number2005: 45.0k number2006: 39.3k number2007: 45.0k number2008: 40.1k number2009: 35.8k number2010: 29.7k number2011: 28.4k number2012: 28.5k number2013: 27.5k number2014: 29.6k number2015: 29.7k number2016: 28.6k number

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in number.

Analysis

The most recent figure for out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Lesotho is 28,565 number, measured in 2016.

That represents a change of down 3.7% on the previous year and down 27.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Lesotho peaked at 113,213 number in 1999 and was at its lowest, 27,533 number, in 2013.

Lesotho ranks 71st of 137 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 36 years of available data.

Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Lesotho, year by year

Annual values for Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and secondary school age, female (number) in Lesotho, 1972 to 2016.
Year number Change
1972 62,175 number
1973 59,261 number -4.7%
1977 59,309 number +0.1%
1978 57,473 number -3.1%
1979 57,925 number +0.8%
1980 59,434 number +2.6%
1981 60,178 number +1.3%
1982 56,944 number -5.4%
1983 59,682 number +4.8%
1984 63,975 number +7.2%
1985 61,144 number -4.4%
1986 65,826 number +7.7%
1991 76,059 number +15.5%
1992 80,410 number +5.7%
1993 90,545 number +12.6%
1994 89,294 number -1.4%
1996 93,449 number +4.7%
1998 110,983 number +18.8%
1999 113,213 number +2.0%
2000 86,875 number -23.3%
2001 79,514 number -8.5%
2002 71,120 number -10.6%
2003 58,387 number -17.9%
2004 52,508 number -10.1%
2005 44,982 number -14.3%
2006 39,291 number -12.7%
2007 44,983 number +14.5%
2008 40,138 number -10.8%
2009 35,784 number -10.8%
2010 29,690 number -17.0%
2011 28,438 number -4.2%
2012 28,463 number +0.1%
2013 27,533 number -3.3%
2014 29,609 number +7.5%
2015 29,671 number +0.2%
2016 28,565 number -3.7%

Lesotho compared with similar countries

  • Lesotho's 28,565 number is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 185,708 number, 15% of the median. (28 countries reporting)
  • Lesotho's 28,565 number is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 385,769 number, 7% of the median. (25 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 59,229 number 57,473 number 62,175 number 5
1980s 61,026 number 56,944 number 65,826 number 7
1990s 93,422 number 76,059 number 113,213 number 7
2000s 55,358 number 35,784 number 86,875 number 10
2010s 28,853 number 27,533 number 29,690 number 7

Countries ranked near Lesotho

  1. 68 Switzerland 35,622 number compare
  2. 69 Kyrgyzstan 34,086 number compare
  3. 70 Namibia 32,276 number compare
  4. 72 United Arab Emirates 24,585 number compare
  5. 73 Azerbaijan 23,079 number
  6. 74 Slovakia 22,322 number compare

See the full ranking of 182 places →

More reference data data for Lesotho

All data for Lesotho →

Frequently asked questions

What is out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Lesotho?
Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Lesotho was 28,565 number in 2016, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and recorded in Lesotho?
The highest recorded value was 113,213 number in 1999.
What is the lowest out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and recorded in Lesotho?
The lowest recorded value was 27,533 number in 2013.
How does Lesotho rank for out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and?
Lesotho ranks 71st out of 137 countries with data for 2016.
Is out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and rising or falling in Lesotho?
Over the last ten years it is down 27.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Lesotho data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and secondary school age, female (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 36 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Lesotho. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 14 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/out-of-school-children-adolescents-and-youth-of-primary-and-secondary-school-age-female/lesotho/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/out-of-school-children-adolescents-and-youth-of-primary-and-secondary-school-age-female/lesotho/">Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Lesotho</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and secondary school age, female (number)
Unit
number
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
182 places, 4,161 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Number of children, adolescents, and youth of primary, lower secondary, and upper secondary school age who are not enrolled or attending school during in a given academic year. For more information, consult the UNESCO Institute of Statistics website: http://www.uis.unesco.org/Education/