Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan

Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan: Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary was 5.23 million number in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
5.23 million number
Change on year
down 0.7%
Rank
26th
of 45 groups
All-time high
13.14 million number
in 1995
All-time low
5.08 million number
in 2012
Years of data
50
1970–2019

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

05.0M10.0M15.0M197019942019

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 is 5.23 million number, measured in 2019.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.7% on the previous year and down 17.9% 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 peaked at 13.14 million number in 1995 and was at its lowest, 5.08 million number, in 2012.

That places Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan 26th 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, 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, 1970 to 2019.
Year number Change
1970 11.43 million number
1971 11.87 million number +3.8%
1972 11.37 million number -4.2%
1973 11.39 million number +0.2%
1974 11.47 million number +0.6%
1975 11.21 million number -2.2%
1976 10.90 million number -2.8%
1977 10.78 million number -1.1%
1978 10.89 million number +1.0%
1979 11.55 million number +6.1%
1980 10.98 million number -5.0%
1981 11.27 million number +2.6%
1982 11.43 million number +1.4%
1983 11.60 million number +1.5%
1984 11.80 million number +1.7%
1985 11.47 million number -2.8%
1986 11.68 million number +1.8%
1987 11.51 million number -1.4%
1988 11.65 million number +1.3%
1989 11.90 million number +2.1%
1990 11.57 million number -2.8%
1991 11.42 million number -1.3%
1992 12.67 million number +10.9%
1993 12.69 million number +0.2%
1994 12.55 million number -1.0%
1995 13.14 million number +4.6%
1996 12.33 million number -6.1%
1997 12.34 million number +0.1%
1998 12.39 million number +0.4%
1999 11.95 million number -3.6%
2000 11.32 million number -5.3%
2001 10.11 million number -10.6%
2002 9.07 million number -10.3%
2003 8.69 million number -4.2%
2004 8.10 million number -6.8%
2005 8.06 million number -0.5%
2006 8.06 million number -0.0%
2007 7.54 million number -6.5%
2008 7.05 million number -6.5%
2009 6.37 million number -9.6%
2010 5.86 million number -8.0%
2011 5.73 million number -2.2%
2012 5.08 million number -11.4%
2013 5.94 million number +16.9%
2014 5.71 million number -3.8%
2015 5.50 million number -3.8%
2016 5.46 million number -0.6%
2017 5.45 million number -0.2%
2018 5.27 million number -3.4%
2019 5.23 million number -0.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 11.29 million number 10.78 million number 11.87 million number 10
1980s 11.53 million number 10.98 million number 11.90 million number 10
1990s 12.30 million number 11.42 million number 13.14 million number 10
2000s 8.44 million number 6.37 million number 11.32 million number 10
2010s 5.52 million number 5.08 million number 5.94 million number 10

Countries ranked near Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan

  1. 23 Central African Republic 495,699 number compare
  2. 24 Malawi 400,638 number compare
  3. 25 Burundi 397,516 number compare
  4. 26 Honduras 385,445 number compare
  5. 27 Eritrea 337,011 number compare
  6. 28 Colombia 276,937 number compare
  7. 29 Mauritania 266,322 number compare

See the full ranking of 194 places →

More reference data data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan

All data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan →

Frequently asked questions

What is out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan was 5.23 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?
The highest recorded value was 13.14 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?
The lowest recorded value was 5.08 million number in 2012.
How does Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan rank for out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary?
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan ranks 26th 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?
Over the last ten years it is down 17.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan 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. 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/

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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/