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 12.3% in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
12.3%
Change on year
down 2.9%
Rank
24th
of 43 groups
All-time high
44.3%
in 1971
All-time low
12.3%
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

10203040197019942019

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 Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan is 12.3%, measured in 2019. That is the lowest value across all 50 years on record.

That represents a change of down 2.9% on the previous year and down 23.4% 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 44.3% in 1971 and was at its lowest, 12.3%, in 2019.

Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan ranks 24th 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, both sexes (%) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, 1970 to 2019.
Year % Change
1970 43.5%
1971 44.3% +1.8%
1972 42.2% -4.7%
1973 41.3% -2.3%
1974 40.4% -2.0%
1975 38.8% -4.1%
1976 37.1% -4.3%
1977 35.9% -3.4%
1978 35.5% -1.0%
1979 36.0% +1.5%
1980 34.3% -4.8%
1981 34.2% -0.2%
1982 33.8% -1.3%
1983 33.3% -1.3%
1984 32.8% -1.4%
1985 31.5% -4.1%
1986 30.8% -2.2%
1987 29.6% -3.8%
1988 29.0% -2.1%
1989 28.7% -1.0%
1990 27.5% -4.2%
1991 26.8% -2.6%
1992 28.0% +4.6%
1993 27.3% -2.5%
1994 26.2% -3.9%
1995 26.6% +1.2%
1996 25.4% -4.4%
1997 25.0% -1.6%
1998 24.7% -1.1%
1999 23.9% -3.2%
2000 23.0% -3.6%
2001 21.6% -6.3%
2002 20.4% -5.5%
2003 19.9% -2.5%
2004 19.0% -4.7%
2005 18.5% -2.3%
2006 18.4% -0.4%
2007 17.9% -2.9%
2008 17.1% -4.5%
2009 16.1% -5.8%
2010 15.6% -3.4%
2011 14.7% -5.4%
2012 13.7% -7.2%
2013 14.9% +8.8%
2014 14.6% -1.7%
2015 14.1% -3.6%
2016 13.5% -3.9%
2017 13.2% -2.5%
2018 12.7% -3.7%
2019 12.3% -2.9%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 39.5% 35.5% 44.3% 10
1980s 31.8% 28.7% 34.3% 10
1990s 26.1% 23.9% 28.0% 10
2000s 19.2% 16.1% 23.0% 10
2010s 13.9% 12.3% 15.6% 10

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

  1. 21 Cambodia 22.4% compare
  2. 22 Iraq 21.4% compare
  3. 23 Panama 20.3% compare
  4. 24 Puerto Rico 20.1% compare
  5. 25 El Salvador 19.8% compare
  6. 26 Jamaica 18.6% compare
  7. 27 Suriname 18.1% compare

See the full ranking of 182 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 12.3% 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 44.3% 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 12.3% 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 24th 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 23.4%. 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, 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 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/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, 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/