Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan

Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan: Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary was 10.7% in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
10.7%
Change on year
down 2.4%
Rank
25th
of 43 groups
All-time high
33.2%
in 1971
All-time low
10.7%
in 2019
Years of data
50
1970–2019

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

101520253035197019942019

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan recorded 10.7% for out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in 2019. That is the lowest value across all 50 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.4% on the previous year and down 21.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan peaked at 33.2% in 1971 and was at its lowest, 10.7%, in 2019.

Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan ranks 25th of 43 groups on this measure, 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 children, adolescents and youth of primary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, year by year

Annual values for Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary, lower secondary and upper secondary school age, male (%) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, 1970 to 2019.
Year % Change
1970 32.6%
1971 33.2% +1.8%
1972 31.7% -4.4%
1973 30.9% -2.5%
1974 30.3% -2.2%
1975 29.3% -3.1%
1976 27.9% -4.9%
1977 27.0% -3.4%
1978 26.8% -0.6%
1979 27.0% +0.8%
1980 26.0% -3.9%
1981 26.0% +0.0%
1982 25.7% -0.9%
1983 25.4% -1.1%
1984 25.1% -1.5%
1985 24.3% -3.1%
1986 23.8% -1.9%
1987 23.1% -3.3%
1988 22.8% -1.1%
1989 22.7% -0.5%
1990 21.7% -4.5%
1991 21.3% -1.9%
1992 22.1% +4.0%
1993 21.7% -1.9%
1994 21.1% -2.9%
1995 21.2% +0.8%
1996 20.7% -2.6%
1997 20.3% -1.5%
1998 20.3% -0.1%
1999 19.8% -2.7%
2000 19.1% -3.3%
2001 17.7% -7.2%
2002 16.9% -4.6%
2003 16.7% -1.6%
2004 15.7% -5.7%
2005 15.4% -1.7%
2006 15.6% +0.8%
2007 15.2% -2.3%
2008 14.5% -4.2%
2009 13.7% -5.5%
2010 13.5% -1.9%
2011 12.9% -4.1%
2012 12.0% -7.4%
2013 13.0% +8.7%
2014 12.8% -2.0%
2015 12.3% -3.7%
2016 11.8% -4.2%
2017 11.5% -2.5%
2018 11.0% -4.0%
2019 10.7% -2.4%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 29.7% 26.8% 33.2% 10
1980s 24.5% 22.7% 26.0% 10
1990s 21.0% 19.8% 22.1% 10
2000s 16.1% 13.7% 19.1% 10
2010s 12.2% 10.7% 13.5% 10

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

  1. 22 Panama 20.8% compare
  2. 23 Cambodia 20.1% compare
  3. 24 El Salvador 19.6% compare
  4. 25 Jamaica 19.1% compare
  5. 26 Cameroon 18.9% compare
  6. 27 British Virgin Islands 17.8% compare
  7. 28 Myanmar 17.2% compare

See the full ranking of 179 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 rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan was 10.7% in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary recorded in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
The highest recorded value was 33.2% in 1971.
What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary recorded in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
The lowest recorded value was 10.7% in 2019.
How does Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan rank for out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary?
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan ranks 25th out of 43 groups with data for 2019.
Is out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary rising or falling in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
Over the last ten years it is down 21.8%. 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 rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary, lower secondary and upper secondary school age, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary 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-rate-for-children-adolescents-and-youth-of-primary-lower-secondary-and-4/middle-east-north-africa-afghanistan-and-pakistan/

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About this data

Indicator
Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary, lower secondary and upper secondary school age, male (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
179 places, 4,045 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Proportion of children, adolescents, and youth in the official age range for primary, lower secondary, and upper secondary education who are not enrolled in primary, lower secondary, or upper secondary education. To calculate the indicator, the number of students of the official age for primary, lower secondary, and upper secondary education enrolled in primary, lower secondary, and upper secondary education is subtracted from the total population of primary, lower secondary, and upper secondary education. The result is expressed as a percentage of the population of the official age for primary, lower secondary, and upper secondary education. For more information, consult the UNESCO Institute of Statistics website: http://www.uis.unesco.org/Education/