Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income)

Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income): Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary was 4.95 million number in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
4.95 million number
Change on year
down 1.6%
Rank
27th
of 45 groups
All-time high
11.64 million number
in 1995
All-time low
4.95 million number
in 2019
Years of data
50
1970–2019

Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income), 1970–2019

02.5M5.0M7.5M10.0M12.5M197019942019

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in number.

Analysis

The most recent figure for out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income) is 4.95 million number, measured in 2019. That is the lowest value across all 50 years on record.

The figure is down 1.6% on the previous year and down 16.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income) peaked at 11.64 million number in 1995 and was at its lowest, 4.95 million number, in 2019.

That places Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income) 27th out of 45 groups with data for 2019, putting it in the middle of the range.

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

Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income), year by year

Annual values for Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary school age, both sexes (number) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income), 1970 to 2019.
Year number Change
1970 10.65 million number
1971 11.04 million number +3.7%
1972 10.51 million number -4.8%
1973 10.51 million number -0.0%
1974 10.56 million number +0.5%
1975 10.28 million number -2.6%
1976 9.93 million number -3.4%
1977 9.78 million number -1.5%
1978 9.83 million number +0.4%
1979 10.20 million number +3.8%
1980 9.85 million number -3.4%
1981 10.07 million number +2.3%
1982 10.20 million number +1.2%
1983 10.35 million number +1.5%
1984 10.52 million number +1.6%
1985 10.16 million number -3.4%
1986 10.35 million number +1.9%
1987 10.15 million number -1.9%
1988 10.27 million number +1.1%
1989 10.47 million number +2.0%
1990 10.10 million number -3.6%
1991 9.88 million number -2.2%
1992 11.04 million number +11.8%
1993 11.13 million number +0.9%
1994 11.00 million number -1.2%
1995 11.64 million number +5.8%
1996 10.88 million number -6.5%
1997 10.94 million number +0.6%
1998 11.07 million number +1.1%
1999 10.68 million number -3.5%
2000 10.09 million number -5.6%
2001 8.92 million number -11.5%
2002 7.94 million number -11.1%
2003 7.60 million number -4.3%
2004 7.07 million number -7.0%
2005 7.08 million number +0.2%
2006 7.17 million number +1.4%
2007 6.80 million number -5.2%
2008 6.44 million number -5.4%
2009 5.91 million number -8.2%
2010 5.62 million number -4.9%
2011 5.53 million number -1.5%
2012 4.97 million number -10.3%
2013 5.76 million number +16.1%
2014 5.56 million number -3.5%
2015 5.44 million number -2.3%
2016 5.31 million number -2.3%
2017 5.17 million number -2.8%
2018 5.02 million number -2.7%
2019 4.95 million number -1.6%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 10.33 million number 9.78 million number 11.04 million number 10
1980s 10.24 million number 9.85 million number 10.52 million number 10
1990s 10.84 million number 9.88 million number 11.64 million number 10
2000s 7.50 million number 5.91 million number 10.09 million number 10
2010s 5.33 million number 4.95 million number 5.76 million number 10

Countries ranked near Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income)

  1. 24 Malawi 400,638 number compare
  2. 25 Burundi 397,516 number compare
  3. 26 Honduras 385,445 number compare
  4. 27 Eritrea 337,011 number compare
  5. 28 Colombia 276,937 number compare
  6. 29 Mauritania 266,322 number compare
  7. 30 Ghana 243,537 number compare

See the full ranking of 194 places →

More reference data data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income)

All data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income) →

Frequently asked questions

What is out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income)?
Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income) was 4.95 million number in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary recorded in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income)?
The highest recorded value was 11.64 million number in 1995.
What is the lowest out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary recorded in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income)?
The lowest recorded value was 4.95 million number in 2019.
How does Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income) rank for out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary?
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income) ranks 27th out of 45 groups with data for 2019.
Is out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary rising or falling in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income)?
Over the last ten years it is down 16.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income) data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary school age, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income). Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 18 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/out-of-school-children-and-adolescents-of-primary-and-lower-secondary-school-age-both/middle-east-north-africa-afghanistan-and-pakistan-excluding-high-income/

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About this data

Indicator
Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary school age, both sexes (number)
Unit
number
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
194 places, 4,726 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Number of children and adolescents of primary and lower 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/