Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Arab World

Arab World: Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary was 20.7% in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
20.7%
Change on year
down 1.7%
Rank
13th
of 43 groups
All-time high
48.8%
in 1971
All-time low
20.7%
in 2019
Years of data
50
1970–2019

Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Arab World, 1970–2019

01020304050197019942019

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Arab World is 20.7%, measured in 2019. That is the lowest value across all 50 years on record.

The figure is down 1.7% on the previous year and down 10.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Arab World peaked at 48.8% in 1971 and was at its lowest, 20.7%, in 2019.

That places Arab World 13th 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 children, adolescents and youth of primary in Arab World, year by year

Annual values for Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary, lower secondary and upper secondary school age, both sexes (%) in Arab World, 1970 to 2019.
Year % Change
1970 48.1%
1971 48.8% +1.5%
1972 47.4% -2.8%
1973 46.6% -1.6%
1974 46.0% -1.4%
1975 45.0% -2.1%
1976 43.8% -2.8%
1977 42.9% -2.0%
1978 42.5% -1.0%
1979 41.7% -1.7%
1980 40.5% -2.9%
1981 39.9% -1.5%
1982 39.9% -0.2%
1983 39.4% -1.1%
1984 39.0% -1.1%
1985 37.5% -3.8%
1986 36.9% -1.6%
1987 35.7% -3.2%
1988 35.2% -1.4%
1989 35.1% -0.3%
1990 34.7% -1.1%
1991 34.2% -1.5%
1992 35.9% +4.9%
1993 35.3% -1.8%
1994 34.0% -3.5%
1995 34.4% +1.0%
1996 33.0% -4.0%
1997 32.4% -1.9%
1998 31.9% -1.5%
1999 30.6% -4.0%
2000 29.7% -2.9%
2001 28.6% -3.6%
2002 27.8% -2.9%
2003 27.0% -2.6%
2004 26.0% -3.8%
2005 25.1% -3.3%
2006 25.1% -0.1%
2007 24.6% -1.9%
2008 23.9% -3.1%
2009 23.1% -3.3%
2010 22.5% -2.6%
2011 22.3% -0.7%
2012 21.9% -1.8%
2013 23.0% +5.1%
2014 22.9% -0.6%
2015 22.4% -2.3%
2016 22.1% -1.3%
2017 21.5% -2.4%
2018 21.1% -2.3%
2019 20.7% -1.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 45.3% 41.7% 48.8% 10
1980s 37.9% 35.1% 40.5% 10
1990s 33.6% 30.6% 35.9% 10
2000s 26.1% 23.1% 29.7% 10
2010s 22.0% 20.7% 23.0% 10

Countries ranked near Arab World

  1. 10 Mauritania 32.2% compare
  2. 11 Guatemala 28.3% compare
  3. 12 Yemen 28.1% compare
  4. 13 Côte d'Ivoire 27.8% compare
  5. 14 Honduras 27.6% compare
  6. 15 Bahamas 27.4% compare
  7. 16 Jordan 26.3% compare

See the full ranking of 182 places →

More reference data data for Arab World

All data for Arab World →

Frequently asked questions

What is out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Arab World?
Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Arab World was 20.7% 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 Arab World?
The highest recorded value was 48.8% in 1971.
What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary recorded in Arab World?
The lowest recorded value was 20.7% in 2019.
How does Arab World rank for out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary?
Arab World ranks 13th out of 43 groups with data for 2019.
Is out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary rising or falling in Arab World?
Over the last ten years it is down 10.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Arab World 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, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Arab World. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 12 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/out-of-school-rate-for-children-adolescents-and-youth-of-primary-lower-secondary-and/arab-world/

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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, both sexes (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
182 places, 4,144 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/