Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Least developed countries

Least developed countries: Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper was 44.0% in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
44.0%
Change on year
down 0.6%
Rank
7th
of 43 groups
All-time high
63.7%
in 1971
All-time low
44.0%
in 2019
Years of data
50
1970–2019

Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Least developed countries, 1970–2019

0204060197019942019

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Least developed countries is 44.0%, measured in 2019. That is the lowest value across all 50 years on record.

That represents a change of down 0.6% on the previous year and down 11.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Least developed countries peaked at 63.7% in 1971 and was at its lowest, 44.0%, in 2019.

Least developed countries ranks 7th of 43 groups on this measure, in the top quarter.

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

Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Least developed countries, year by year

Annual values for Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper secondary school age, both sexes (%) in Least developed countries, 1970 to 2019.
Year % Change
1970 63.4%
1971 63.7% +0.4%
1972 63.5% -0.3%
1973 63.3% -0.3%
1974 63.2% -0.2%
1975 62.7% -0.8%
1976 62.5% -0.3%
1977 62.4% -0.2%
1978 62.0% -0.6%
1979 61.6% -0.7%
1980 61.3% -0.4%
1981 60.9% -0.7%
1982 60.3% -1.0%
1983 60.7% +0.7%
1984 60.6% -0.1%
1985 60.7% +0.2%
1986 60.8% +0.1%
1987 60.7% -0.3%
1988 60.4% -0.4%
1989 60.5% +0.1%
1990 60.5% +0.1%
1991 60.3% -0.3%
1992 60.8% +0.7%
1993 60.5% -0.5%
1994 60.7% +0.3%
1995 59.7% -1.5%
1996 59.5% -0.5%
1997 59.1% -0.6%
1998 61.5% +4.0%
1999 60.6% -1.5%
2000 60.0% -1.0%
2001 59.2% -1.4%
2002 57.5% -2.9%
2003 56.4% -1.8%
2004 55.9% -0.8%
2005 55.6% -0.6%
2006 53.9% -3.0%
2007 52.8% -2.2%
2008 51.4% -2.7%
2009 49.9% -2.8%
2010 48.5% -2.8%
2011 48.2% -0.7%
2012 47.2% -2.2%
2013 47.0% -0.4%
2014 46.7% -0.5%
2015 46.4% -0.6%
2016 45.3% -2.4%
2017 44.6% -1.6%
2018 44.3% -0.6%
2019 44.0% -0.6%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 62.8% 61.6% 63.7% 10
1980s 60.7% 60.3% 61.3% 10
1990s 60.3% 59.1% 61.5% 10
2000s 55.3% 49.9% 60.0% 10
2010s 46.2% 44.0% 48.5% 10

Countries ranked near Least developed countries

  1. 4 Guinea 57.7% compare
  2. 5 Djibouti 55.6% compare
  3. 6 Ethiopia 55.5% compare
  4. 7 Burkina Faso 54.1% compare
  5. 8 Mozambique 52.8% compare
  6. 9 Côte d'Ivoire 50.1% compare
  7. 10 Syrian Arab Republic 48.4% compare

See the full ranking of 185 places →

More reference data data for Least developed countries

All data for Least developed countries →

Frequently asked questions

What is out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Least developed countries?
Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Least developed countries was 44.0% in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper recorded in Least developed countries?
The highest recorded value was 63.7% in 1971.
What is the lowest out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper recorded in Least developed countries?
The lowest recorded value was 44.0% in 2019.
How does Least developed countries rank for out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper?
Least developed countries ranks 7th out of 43 groups with data for 2019.
Is out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper rising or falling in Least developed countries?
Over the last ten years it is down 11.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Least developed countries data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper secondary school age, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Least developed countries. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 07 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/out-of-school-rate-for-adolescents-and-youth-of-lower-and-upper-secondary-school-age-both/least-developed-countries-un-classification/

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About this data

Indicator
Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper secondary school age, both sexes (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
185 places, 4,210 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Number of adolescents and youth of 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/