Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Least developed countries

Least developed countries: Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and was 41.40 million number in 2019. ▲ Rising

Latest (2019)
41.40 million number
Change on year
up 0.9%
Rank
16th
of 45 groups
All-time high
44.32 million number
in 1999
All-time low
26.15 million number
in 1970
Years of data
50
1970–2019

Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Least developed countries, 1970–2019

010.0M20.0M30.0M40.0M197019942019

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in number.

Analysis

Least developed countries recorded 41.40 million number for out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in 2019.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.9% on the previous year and up 10.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Least developed countries peaked at 44.32 million number in 1999 and was at its lowest, 26.15 million number, in 1970.

Least developed countries ranks 16th of 45 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 50 years of available data.

Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Least developed countries, year by year

Annual values for Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and secondary school age, male (number) in Least developed countries, 1970 to 2019.
Year number Change
1970 26.15 million number
1971 26.54 million number +1.5%
1972 26.40 million number -0.5%
1973 26.34 million number -0.2%
1974 27.10 million number +2.9%
1975 27.23 million number +0.5%
1976 27.49 million number +0.9%
1977 27.65 million number +0.6%
1978 27.95 million number +1.1%
1979 28.37 million number +1.5%
1980 28.71 million number +1.2%
1981 29.25 million number +1.9%
1982 29.60 million number +1.2%
1983 30.18 million number +1.9%
1984 31.47 million number +4.3%
1985 32.51 million number +3.3%
1986 33.39 million number +2.7%
1987 34.40 million number +3.0%
1988 34.76 million number +1.1%
1989 35.98 million number +3.5%
1990 37.35 million number +3.8%
1991 37.88 million number +1.4%
1992 39.05 million number +3.1%
1993 39.99 million number +2.4%
1994 40.78 million number +2.0%
1995 40.56 million number -0.5%
1996 41.30 million number +1.8%
1997 41.20 million number -0.2%
1998 43.47 million number +5.5%
1999 44.32 million number +2.0%
2000 44.04 million number -0.6%
2001 43.50 million number -1.2%
2002 42.19 million number -3.0%
2003 41.23 million number -2.3%
2004 40.79 million number -1.1%
2005 40.05 million number -1.8%
2006 39.03 million number -2.5%
2007 38.52 million number -1.3%
2008 37.37 million number -3.0%
2009 37.33 million number -0.1%
2010 37.98 million number +1.7%
2011 38.37 million number +1.0%
2012 38.53 million number +0.4%
2013 38.78 million number +0.7%
2014 39.59 million number +2.1%
2015 40.64 million number +2.7%
2016 40.34 million number -0.7%
2017 40.61 million number +0.7%
2018 41.05 million number +1.1%
2019 41.40 million number +0.9%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 27.12 million number 26.15 million number 28.37 million number 10
1980s 32.03 million number 28.71 million number 35.98 million number 10
1990s 40.59 million number 37.35 million number 44.32 million number 10
2000s 40.40 million number 37.33 million number 44.04 million number 10
2010s 39.73 million number 37.98 million number 41.40 million number 10

Countries ranked near Least developed countries

  1. 13 Yemen 857,780 number compare
  2. 14 Kenya 837,895 number compare
  3. 15 Egypt 780,760 number compare
  4. 16 Philippines 749,298 number compare
  5. 17 Türkiye 746,424 number compare
  6. 18 Cameroon 695,517 number compare
  7. 19 Guatemala 645,958 number compare

See the full ranking of 181 places →

More reference data data for Least developed countries

All data for Least developed countries →

Frequently asked questions

What is out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Least developed countries?
Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Least developed countries was 41.40 million number in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and recorded in Least developed countries?
The highest recorded value was 44.32 million number in 1999.
What is the lowest out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and recorded in Least developed countries?
The lowest recorded value was 26.15 million number in 1970.
How does Least developed countries rank for out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and?
Least developed countries ranks 16th out of 45 groups with data for 2019.
Is out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and rising or falling in Least developed countries?
Over the last ten years it is up 10.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Least developed countries 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, male (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Least developed countries. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 13 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/out-of-school-children-adolescents-and-youth-of-primary-and-secondary-school-age-male/least-developed-countries-un-classification/

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About this data

Indicator
Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and secondary school age, male (number)
Unit
number
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
181 places, 4,156 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/