Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Asia

South Asia: Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper was 33.2% in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
33.2%
Change on year
up 0.7%
Rank
10th
of 43 groups
All-time high
66.9%
in 1971
All-time low
32.9%
in 2018
Years of data
50
1970–2019

Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Asia, 1970–2019

0204060197019942019

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 2019, out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Asia stood at 33.2%.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.7% on the previous year and down 29.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Asia peaked at 66.9% in 1971 and was at its lowest, 32.9%, in 2018.

That places South Asia 10th out of 43 groups with data for 2019, putting it 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 South Asia, year by year

Annual values for Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper secondary school age, female (%) in South Asia, 1970 to 2019.
Year % Change
1970 66.8%
1971 66.9% +0.1%
1972 66.7% -0.3%
1973 66.4% -0.4%
1974 66.2% -0.3%
1975 66.0% -0.2%
1976 66.0% -0.0%
1977 65.9% -0.2%
1978 65.8% -0.1%
1979 65.5% -0.5%
1980 65.0% -0.7%
1981 64.6% -0.7%
1982 64.1% -0.7%
1983 63.3% -1.2%
1984 62.8% -0.9%
1985 62.3% -0.7%
1986 62.0% -0.6%
1987 62.0% +0.1%
1988 62.0% -0.0%
1989 61.9% -0.1%
1990 61.3% -1.1%
1991 60.4% -1.4%
1992 59.6% -1.3%
1993 58.9% -1.2%
1994 58.8% -0.1%
1995 59.2% +0.6%
1996 58.7% -0.9%
1997 58.9% +0.4%
1998 61.7% +4.7%
1999 62.8% +1.7%
2000 61.9% -1.5%
2001 61.3% -0.9%
2002 59.4% -3.0%
2003 56.2% -5.4%
2004 54.8% -2.5%
2005 53.4% -2.6%
2006 51.8% -2.9%
2007 49.9% -3.7%
2008 47.6% -4.6%
2009 46.8% -1.7%
2010 44.0% -6.1%
2011 41.8% -4.8%
2012 39.5% -5.7%
2013 37.4% -5.2%
2014 36.9% -1.5%
2015 34.9% -5.3%
2016 34.3% -1.8%
2017 33.4% -2.5%
2018 32.9% -1.3%
2019 33.2% +0.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 66.2% 65.5% 66.9% 10
1980s 63.0% 61.9% 65.0% 10
1990s 60.0% 58.7% 62.8% 10
2000s 54.3% 46.8% 61.9% 10
2010s 36.8% 32.9% 44.0% 10

Countries ranked near South Asia

  1. 7 Djibouti 56.0% compare
  2. 8 Côte d'Ivoire 54.8% compare
  3. 9 Burkina Faso 52.5% compare
  4. 10 Yemen 50.6% compare
  5. 11 Syrian Arab Republic 49.0% compare
  6. 12 Guatemala 48.1% compare
  7. 13 Iraq 47.5% compare

See the full ranking of 181 places →

More reference data data for South Asia

All data for South Asia →

Frequently asked questions

What is out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Asia?
Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Asia was 33.2% 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 South Asia?
The highest recorded value was 66.9% in 1971.
What is the lowest out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper recorded in South Asia?
The lowest recorded value was 32.9% in 2018.
How does South Asia rank for out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper?
South Asia ranks 10th 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 South Asia?
Over the last ten years it is down 29.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this South Asia 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, female (%). 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 South Asia. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 12 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/out-of-school-rate-for-adolescents-and-youth-of-lower-and-upper-secondary-school-age/south-asia/

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About this data

Indicator
Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper secondary school age, female (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
181 places, 4,097 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/