Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)

Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD): Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper was 22.5% in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
22.5%
Change on year
down 3.0%
Rank
19th
of 43 groups
All-time high
51.3%
in 1971
All-time low
22.5%
in 2019
Years of data
50
1970–2019

Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD), 1970–2019

0204060197019942019

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) recorded 22.5% for out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in 2019. That is the lowest value across all 50 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 3.0% on the previous year and down 12.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) peaked at 51.3% in 1971 and was at its lowest, 22.5%, in 2019.

That places Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) 19th out of 43 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 rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD), year by year

Annual values for Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper secondary school age, both sexes (%) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD), 1970 to 2019.
Year % Change
1970 49.6%
1971 51.3% +3.5%
1972 48.9% -4.6%
1973 48.4% -1.1%
1974 47.7% -1.4%
1975 46.8% -1.9%
1976 45.7% -2.5%
1977 44.6% -2.4%
1978 44.8% +0.4%
1979 44.1% -1.4%
1980 44.0% -0.3%
1981 43.4% -1.2%
1982 43.8% +0.9%
1983 43.9% +0.1%
1984 44.5% +1.4%
1985 42.2% -5.2%
1986 41.8% -0.8%
1987 40.4% -3.3%
1988 40.1% -0.9%
1989 39.8% -0.8%
1990 38.8% -2.5%
1991 38.5% -0.8%
1992 38.6% +0.3%
1993 37.5% -2.7%
1994 36.9% -1.7%
1995 36.4% -1.2%
1996 35.7% -2.1%
1997 34.6% -3.0%
1998 33.6% -2.7%
1999 32.5% -3.3%
2000 31.7% -2.4%
2001 30.9% -2.5%
2002 30.1% -2.5%
2003 29.3% -2.9%
2004 28.1% -3.9%
2005 27.7% -1.4%
2006 27.5% -0.9%
2007 27.6% +0.5%
2008 26.9% -2.8%
2009 25.6% -4.5%
2010 26.0% +1.5%
2011 24.6% -5.4%
2012 23.6% -4.4%
2013 26.2% +11.1%
2014 26.0% -0.8%
2015 25.6% -1.6%
2016 24.3% -5.0%
2017 23.7% -2.3%
2018 23.2% -2.1%
2019 22.5% -3.0%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 47.2% 44.1% 51.3% 10
1980s 42.4% 39.8% 44.5% 10
1990s 36.3% 32.5% 38.8% 10
2000s 28.6% 25.6% 31.7% 10
2010s 24.6% 22.5% 26.2% 10

Countries ranked near Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)

  1. 16 Yemen 42.0% compare
  2. 17 Mauritania 41.6% compare
  3. 18 Iraq 38.3% compare
  4. 19 Cambodia 38.3% compare
  5. 20 Tuvalu 37.9% compare
  6. 21 Jordan 34.7% compare
  7. 22 British Virgin Islands 34.7% compare

See the full ranking of 185 places →

More reference data data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)

All data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) →

Frequently asked questions

What is out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)?
Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) was 22.5% 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 Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)?
The highest recorded value was 51.3% in 1971.
What is the lowest out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper recorded in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)?
The lowest recorded value was 22.5% in 2019.
How does Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) rank for out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper?
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) ranks 19th 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 Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)?
Over the last ten years it is down 12.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) 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 Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD). Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 18 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/out-of-school-rate-for-adolescents-and-youth-of-lower-and-upper-secondary-school-age-both/middle-east-north-africa-afghanistan-and-pakistan-ida-and-ibrd/

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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/